


The Collector

by thepinkpanther



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Aro does not swear, Aro has a peculiar way of viewing people, Aro has issues, BAMF Aro, Bella is 17, Chance Meetings, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Pre-Canon, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, Tags May Change, Vampire Turning, and accompanies him when there is need to travel, based on the rumour that Renata is Aro's personal shield, birds will be the death of Aro, but Bella sure does, excessive use of alcohol, hence Aro's a little bit insane, there are consequences to reading people's thoughts, thoughts of death/dying, very slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:40:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 121,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26485054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thepinkpanther/pseuds/thepinkpanther
Summary: “You haven’t even told me your name.”Nor had Bella.He slowly blinked, once, as if he was completely baffled by himself.“How… utterly remiss of me. Indeed, I have not. Let us do this the proper way, shall we?” he extended his manicured hand to shake hers. “My name is Aro Volturi.”A strange name for a strange man.Bella looked at it, then thought,to hell with it, shrugged and grasped his wintery hand over the empty seat with her own considerably warmer one, in what she expected to be a quick handshake.“Bella Swan,” her lips curved into a genuine smile without her trying.a.k.a.the AU in which the Cullens are not the first vampires to meet Bella, instead, she meets the collector of gifted vampires and his lovely companion.
Relationships: Aro & Bella Swan, Aro & Carlisle Cullen, Aro & Renata (Twilight), Aro/Bella Swan, Past Aro/Sulpicia (Twilight)
Comments: 318
Kudos: 483





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Obviously.
> 
> Soooo, this is my attempt at trying my hand at writing Twilight fanfiction. I have read a few fics featuring the Volturi, Bella, the Cullens etc., though it’s been a while and even longer since I have read the books and seen the movies. I guess it has been more than 10 years.  
> What I mean is – do not expect everything to be as it was in canon – it will probably be a mix of facts from the books and the movies and I fear also other fanfics, so, fair warning (if you were not a lazy bugger and did not skip this note), additionally, there will probably be a few things that I’ll change or portray differently from canon, so don’t be alarmed.  
> Also, I think I should disclose that Edward is not my favourite character, nor is Alice, so be aware there might be mild Edward and/or Alice bashing (if I’ll get that far), in case I could not help myself.  
> The last thing for now is that English is not my native language so, mostly?, I have no idea what is British or American English specific, the whole thing just flows over my head.. Sorry. Also, grammar mistakes. Doubly sorry.  
> Anyway, I enjoyed getting this out of my head, maybe someone will enjoy reading it as well.

_23:42 p.m., December 21, 2004, San Francisco International Airport_

Every now and then, life happened, and Fate loved to remind him (more like slap him in the face with a squiggling sea fish) that despite him being one of the most powerful beings in existence, he too was not exempt from being subjected to the burning pit fires of hell that was public transportation. More precisely, in this case, the waiting area of San Francisco Airport, where he presently found himself in.

If one wanted to pass fairly inconspicuously through the herds of people that dominated the civilised parts of the West Coast of the United States of America, especially after falling victim to life’s thrown curveballs, and let it be said that life apparently loved doing so by sending whistling swans, yellow beaks first into his and, by extension, the Guard’s poor, unguarded jet’s engines, then- 

“WAAAAAAAAW!” - _~~I am **not** goingto killthatdisgus~~ \- _

Why yes, if one wanted to pass fairly inconspicuously through the herds of people that dominated the civilised parts of the West Cost of the United States of America, one needed to master the _Moste Difficulte Arte_ of Iron-Clad Self-Control. And he was not talking about plain old bloodlust here, never mind there being 178 humans in the waiting hall (including the _~~bloodybansh~~ _baby fifteen seats and three rows of waiting chairs down and to his ten o’clock), with beating hearts pumping warm, wet, bloody blood-red elixir of life at the leisurely pace of an average five to six kilometres per hour, depending.

No.

No no no, bloodlust was, frankly, not worth straining his mental faculties to ponder about, even if his last meal was (he opened his eyes to grace the luminescent numbers 23:44 of the digital clock on the opposite wall with his dark gaze, for he was seated against the far wall of the hall, closest to the first class terminal, his eventual salvation) 591 hours and 17 minutes ago. He’d gone longer without. His consciously recognised record was 305 days in his worst depressive episode as of late in the year 1540 AD when his ardently beloved sister Didyme took her own life by setting herself on fire and flinging herself from the castle’s tower moments before he could reach her and stop her.

Nearly half a millennia ago.

Didyme. Didyme. Didyme. Didyme. Didyme. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead Dead.  
Didyme. Dead Didyme. Didyme. Dead Didyme. Didyme. Dead Didyme. Dy-

“Master?” Ah, sweet darling Renata. Always sensing when his thoughts started spiralling. Or just paying closer attention to his gloved hands which, for a moment there, had held fast to the armrests a smidgen too tightly. The indents were practically non-existent, unperceivable with a naked, half blind human eye.

_No one will notice._

“Yes, dear?”  
  
“The flight has been delayed for another hour and a half.” Her voice was imbued with apology yet held a tinge of budding frustration. Sweet gentle Renata, even she was not immune to the perils of prolonged exposure to inefficient human means of travel. Excellent.

Collective groaning arose moments later as the herd read the announcement (he opened his eyes again and there it was, below the digital clock numbers, the unexpected but dreaded piece of information, which was announced mere seconds later by an unnaturally clear female voice “ _…the flight 67483 San Francisco – Seattle has been delayed for further ninety minutes due to the dense fog surrounding the airport’s runways…_ ” Figures San Francisco Airport would be the fogbound one, not the one of Seattle.

His journey home had been halted by the blasted birds in LA, where they left Jane, Demetri, Felix, Jacques (a young member of the guard, only two hundred years old, with a penchant for making people see reason), Lily (who had been changed in her forty-second year of her human life and barely stood taller than his late sister… and who had been changed in 676 AD while in process of assassinating the ruling dynasty’s heir in Osaka, and was as strong as Felix and as fast as Aro himself). Oh, how he loved life’s little mysteries. However, being trained in the ‘forgotten’ arts from the tender age of six and becoming one of the deadliest assassins in Asia at the time should, perhaps, be given some consideration.

And lastly, Emil. Their pilot. His newest and youngest acquisition. Emil was a rare soul with an affinity for flight which, surprise, surprise, and Aro very much liked pleasant surprises indeed, yes he did, transcended even to flying machinery, such as their poor, unguarded private jet and was, most probably, the only reason why they had safely landed in LA with busted engines only, rather than currently partaking in a lovely stroll through saltwater on the Pacific Basin, and still held possession of their belongings and souvenirs from Japan. Caius would be beyond incensed for months if Jane and Aro had lost his ordered (demanded, more like) katanas to some blade-hungry blue whale. Plus, the trek to mainland through water would have been an arduous one, given the depth of the ocean, in which even their superior vision would be strained to its limit to make path to the contin-

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWW!” _~~that squealinglittlefu~~_

Aro’s self-control was impeccable; at least he used to pride himself with the notion, before. Before. He should be facing infinitely graver circumstances for the craving of swearing to rise its hideous head, yet here he was, starting to doubt…

Thus, their jet was in dire need of new components and he had decided, on a whim, that if he indeed had found himself stranded in the Americas and, better yet, conveniently on the West Coast, it was high time he paid his dear old friend Carlisle, whom he has not seen for almost three centuries now, a visit. Carlisle never graced Volterra's halls with his presence anymore, not since before beginning to build his family.

Which is not to say they have had no contact at all.

There were the occasional letters sent between them, and the rare phone call during the last decades as further technological advances were made.

Additionally, there were plenty of nomads and travelling vampires, vampires with grudges who travelled specifically to Volterra, even the Guard members on the occasional mission, who all happened to bump into Carlisle or his blooming family of gifted individuals sooner or later.

All it took was a brush of his hand against anyone who had come into contact with his dear friend or his family members to have a glimpse of their memories and to See, himself. Besides, he had Carlisle's number. He could call. He should call. Right now. It should even be the polite thing to do. The right thing.  
  
Decisions, decisions. _However._ He won’t.

This impromptu … _trip_ has already started bad enough. No need to bring excessive embarrassment upon himself, well, more than he already has by Renata witnessing his misfortune. Their misfortune. She was suffering along with him, a small comfort but one nonetheless. Sometimes Aro fancied thinking this was karma. For being who he was, sitting on his high throne, deciding fate of vampires and humans alike, it was, perchance, even fair that Fate liked to play with him now and again, by throwing him among hundreds of beating hearts on empty stomach and telling him to be good and patient because Fate fancied a bit of misty weather. He was not sure he appreciated the effort, however, one could not deny Fate had a sense of humour.

“WAAAAW! AAAAAAAAAAAW!!”

He would not sigh, he would not sigh, he would not sigh. Aro still possessed his iron clad control but what wouldn’t he give to be able to wring that dreadful thing’s neck… He sighed.

Perhaps he should reconsider. Perhaps all these little hints played by the universe were a clear sign that he was not meant to be here and to turn back, or just fly home.  
  
But no.  
  
He had made a whimsy decision and would not back down now. His pride would not let him. Besides, the seemingly more undecided he was, and the likelihood that that little prescient witch won’t see him coming so he, for once, could surprise Carlisle, the better. Not that Aro did not like Fate making things difficult for him from time to time. Fate made his life interesting, and he needed some more fun before enclosing himself in his marble castle for the next fifty years. The mission to Japan had gone tremendously well (probably accredited to Jacques's involvement), but he was not yet ready to return home. Honestly? He was confident he could rely on Caius and Marcus to hold the fort. Especially Caius. He delighted in being the one to make all the important decisions. When the cat’s away… Nothing important for the foreseeable future was scheduled to happen at home either way.

“Master?”

“I am well, Renata. Do not worry so much.”

Sweet girl. He was glad he had decided to take her with, for she, too, was in need of a change, to see more of the world and he knew, intimately, her deepest desires, such as travelling the world and searching for her significant other half. It has been almost 276 years since her turning, but, alas, she was an invaluable member of the Volturi, his personal shield and thus irreplaceable. He could not let her wander the world, for she provided protection from physical attacks, as well as unwanted attention.

He was not blind, _Marcus_ , he knew she loved him, almost all of the guard did, and those who did not still harboured some degree of affection toward him. Except for Caius, it was rather that of a love-hate relationship between them, though he knew Caius would stand by him till the end of time. No, Renata wanted to leave, not permanently, just until she found what she was looking for in this world. As much as he wanted to let her, he wouldn't take the risk. He couldn't.

And so she stayed.

He hoped Renata will enjoy their visit to Carlisle in Washington State as much as Aro himself will. He had a feeling that despite all the bumps in the road, this situation was something he had to see through. He opened his eyes for the third time since sitting down and saw it was around fourty additional minutes still until the boarding of the plane commenced.

And that blasted child was still going strong for the last half hour. In times like these, vampiric senses were a curse. He would not stop himself from hearing, although he could, very easily. When one has lived for approximately five thousand years, give or take a few centuries or millennia, there were a lot of useful little things that got cracked, given the right motivation, such as the sparkling problem or making oneself deaf when needed.

Alas, he was not in a safe space, even though there were only humans around, as far as he could tell. However, he was bound to some degree of responsibility as he had Renata with him (which translated to two perfectly lovely, unoccupied seats to his left where the row ended beside the terminal gate and additional three unoccupied seats on his right past Renata, or (correction) three half-occupied seats, taken by their possessions which they categorically refused to part with, even during the flight) thus having the luxury of not having food sit or, Fate forbid, talk directly by him.

Particularly, if his last meal has been over three weeks ago. Thank Fate for the lovely Renata and her gift that dissuaded people from looking at them, much less from approaching. Granted, other vampires would be able to spot them without difficulty, but should they desire to come near, they would find themselves directed away long before touching the shield. Very fortunate it was practically second nature for Renata, at this point, to keep the shield up for extended periods of time.

Given this, he would not make himself deaf but suffer the noise of screeching infants, loud blood-pumping hearts, chattering humans and the general hubbub pertaining to airports. He owed the girl as much, there was no need to worry her by dissociating one of his senses, and bring his guard and brothers’ ire upon her.  
  
He decided to partake in a bit of human watching to ease out of some of his darker spiralling thoughts and opened his eyes again for the fourth time.

There was not much to see, really. The waiting hall of the airport was full, all the seats taken and dozens of humans sitting on the floor or against walls or pillars, some were asleep or trying to slumber, despite the wailing brat, but as it was practically night-time already, the flight being delayed again and again since 17:45 and the airport shops had closed as well as the cafes, the passengers had eventually perched in the hall, waiting.  
  
The thrice damned child gave another loud cry and a girl sitting two seats away from it leapt to her feet, swayed a little, grabbed her bag and swung it on her shoulder while making a fast retreat from the siren like infant who would, without slightest doubt, have some sort of noisy gift should it ever became a vampire in the future, thus ensuring it’s prompt elimination from this world. No one could, or should, suffer such unholy sounds and be held accountable for their actions.  
  
The girl exited the aisle between the rows and stopped. She started scanning the crowd, no doubt searching for another unoccupied seat. She had dark chocolate coloured eyes, which became more and more dismayed finding all the seats taken and seeing people sitting on the tiled ivory floor. Objectively, she was reasonably pretty, had a fairly symmetrical face, straight nose, pale lips, almond shaped eyes, upturned eyebrows and waist long mahogany hair. Thin but not sickly so, almost as tall as Aro, his guess would be 5’10, dressed in casual jeans and a mint green hoody. He could only guess at her age; the ability to tell exact human ages was one of the few skills that became impossible to retain and could never be mastered when one lived for longer than a few centuries, though he was fairly confident her age was between fifteen and twenty-five years. Children and very old people were easy, anything between became a gamble. The girl's distress was further pronounced by dark rings under her eyes, it seemed someone was in desperate need of baby-less rest. Not that he cared one bit.  
  
Aro closed his eyes again and tried to will the fog outside away. He was succeeding, a little. Manipulating the elements from enclosed spaces such as the airport building was problematic. Should he be outside, he’d wager he could dissipate it using wind in no time; however, making the tiny water droplets condense and fall would be a tad more difficult and time consuming but nothing that could not be done under a minute, taking into consideration the size of the airport's surrounding area. Then again, attempting this method without influencing the air in the indoors of the building was exponentially trickier. He had made slow but steady progress these past hours and was sure there won’t be another delay, regardless of the forecast, they should be able to take off without further glitches.

Evidently, few knew of this particular skill of his, there was no need to make it public knowledge. Not many vampires were aware, as it too was not exactly popular information, but while some were born gift-less, the vast majority were gifted... little things, really, more developed intuition, sight, speed, strength, charm, et cetera. Few possessed powerful gifts, such as Renata or Jane, but occasionally, some, like himself, had many talents. Mind reading was his passive gift, very powerful and useful, though with obvious downsides (such as too much information, all at once, living for countless years longer than most others while seeing their long lives in a matter of seconds). They all wondered how he was still sane. The truth is, he wasn’t.

Manipulating the elements was something he could do actively; air the easiest, water and fire, being more difficult, came second and third. Also, he was very fast, faster than any in Volterra, save Lily. A few millennia ago he discovered that, given his affinity to air, much like Emil, he could master flight (and wasn’t that a terrifically exhilarating experience). He loved flying, but lately could not indulge often due to ever arising awareness of human technology. Especially in the larger cities. The bottom line, the most talented undead had multiple gifts, the longer one lived and the more in tune with their spirit they became, the more gifts could be unlocked and mastered.

Such was the simple truth.  
  
He could sense vague traces of distress radiating from Renata, which got more prominent with every passing second. Now that he was paying attention, he could hear the slow shuffling of light feet and a strong, nearing heartbeat. Aro opened his eyes for the fifth time that night and saw the girl from before making slow but steady way to them.

Most peculiar, no one should be approaching them so directly. Even the people sitting right in front of them did not register anything beside a wall and shied away from so much as looking in their direction.

Which, apparently, was not the case for the nameless girl who was clearly studying both Renata and Aro, and likely wondering why none of the people on the floor made any attempt at claiming one of the (many) free seats beside them. Well, she clearly found them intimidating. Ergo the slow approach.  
  
Beside him, Renata’s hands started to shake and he had to place his gloved one on hers. The girl effortlessly breached the invisible physical manifestation of the shield and stopped inside the bubble a few meters from them, forever sealing her Fate.  
  
“Um... Hi. Is this seat taken?” was the quiet question, accompanied by a guarded look. She gestured to the second seat furthest from Aro, right beside the gate.  
  
“Not at all,” Aro answered while putting on one of his most charming smiles. “You are most welcome to join us.”


	2. Interlude: Bella

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the middle of the airport’s waiting room, sitting just a couple of seats from the hellspawn with lungs of a banshee, was a very miserable girl.

Bella had thought that leaving Phoenix for Forks earlier than the middle of January, as first planned, would be the better choice. That way she could attempt to rebond with Charlie, whom she has not seen in person for the past three years, before they had to slip into the routine that was school and Charlie’s police station. Bella felt that surprising Charlie by arriving before Christmas and, consequently, spending the Holidays together might be tons more considerate as opposed to just up and appearing on his doorstep one unremarkable evening with something like “Hi, remember me? It's Bella, your daughter! Long time, no see… Where my bedroom’s at?” or something equally dreadful. So, there should be the added bonus of sparing copious amounts of stress to both of them.

Now, the idea had merit, the plan was practically flawless. But as life would have it, sometimes, nothing goes smoothly. The saying “Man plans and God laughs” came to her mind. Very fitting, that.

If she would indulge in a bit of introspective contemplation, she would find that everything just might have started with fully booked direct flights from Phoenix to Seattle for this week and the next (people sure wanted to visit their families during 'The Happiest Time Of All', the fucking bastards). So, she had to find another alternative. After a bit of investigating, Bella discovered that there were a couple of seats still available, if she flew to San Francisco and then transferred to Seattle. So that’s what she did.

Now, stuck in San Francisco, she started to regret this particular course of action. First, she had almost missed her flight from Phoenix because Renée had misplaced the car keys, again. Second, the flight to Seattle was now repeatedly delayed due to the fucking fog outside. She should have known. After all, San Francisco International Airport was notorious for the fog delays, but it was just one of those things, you know, like getting into a freak accident, which happened to everybody else but never to you, right?

WRONG.

Third, being stuck in SFO Airport’s waiting room was no fun in the best of circumstances.

Having to listen to a fucking baby cry his lungs out practically right next to her poor ears, while being tired, hungry, and on edge, was bad.

Having forgotten to put her headphones in her shoulder bag, which might have filtered out the bulk of the noise, was beginning to look more and more like an opening scene of a tragedy.

Her plan had been simple: fly to San Francisco, be there around 3:00 pm, transfer to a flight to Seattle at 5:45 pm sharp, arrive in Seattle around eight-ish in the evening. Get a taxi to her hotel, check in for the night. Succumb to the sweet oblivion of sleep. Wake up the next morning, catch the first bus to Forks. Arrive in Forks around 3:00 pm. Surprise Charlie. Easy.

Well, not so much, anymore.

She’d already missed the check-in time at the hotel, and 3:00 am looked to be the quickest she’ll be getting to Seattle, given no further delays occurred. _So, no sleepy time for Bella._ She threw a dark look to the devil-child and his idiot of a mother, then looked past them to the huge glass wall of floor to ceiling windows and decided that the mist really did look a bit more translucent than a few hours ago. This was good news.

The fucking baby, which was clad in a light blue onesie that had the name ‘Richie’ printed in bold letters on the little guy’s chest, gave another high pitched wail (with a name like that, wailing suddenly made a lot more sense).

That was it. She could not stand this… this… _abuse_ for a second longer.

Bella got to her feet and, unsurprisingly, lost her balance and almost fell on the nice elderly man who reminded her of a not-quite-there-yet Santa (he still had a bit of pepper left in his hair), caught herself at the last moment, and beelined for the closest end of the aisle.

There, she stopped and started to survey the waiting room. It was packed to the brim with people. Every single seat was taken; some unlucky ones were sitting on the ground, leaning against walls. Some had even gotten out their sleeping bags and were succeeding, or at least attempting, to sleep despite the noise.

Bella did not want to sit on the floor, or sleep on the floor, which might as well happen regardless of her wishes. She doubted that her book, safely and soundly (and heavily) residing in her bag, would distract her from the increasing need for sleep.

Her head had finally turned all the way to her right, to the furthest part of the waiting hall, closest to the first class terminal gate, when she spotted two figures that had glutinously occupied SEVEN SEATS, ALL FOR THEMSELVES. Now, this was curious business. Such a thing should not be possible, regardless of who these people were.

As she neared them in a glacial pace, Bella saw that the two seats to the right of the couple were completely empty, which was not the case for the three seats to the left of them, which were used for their many, many, many belongings. Too many, to Bella’s mind, to be allowed to be taken along with them as hand baggage, regardless if they were indeed flying in the first class section.

Then there was the couple. Upon closer inspection, she found, to her utter astonishment, that they were the two most beautiful people she had ever seen, in her entire life. And that included actors and models on screen, not just regular real life people. They put the make-up artist and hair stylist pampered red carpet celebrities to shame. Especially the woman. She was around twenty-five years old, though she looked very mature for her age, and had a perfectly symmetrical diamond shaped face, full red lips, little button nose, graceful eyebrows, high chiselled cheekbones, long and wavy, and very dark brown hair, could even be black. She was wearing a black business style jumpsuit with white killer heels.

However, her eyes were her most outstanding feature. Bella had never seen eyes which possessed such intensity and focus, but their colour _had to be_ completely unique. They appeared dark brown, but Bella suspected, possessed a shade of red to them, so the mix was something closer to dark aubergine colour.

The man, on the other hand, was… strange. He wasn’t old, not really, but he was not young either. On first glance he appeared little older than the woman, however, he might as well be forty, he possessed one of those seemingly ageless faces. He, much like the lady, was dressed in black, except he was wearing a very nice Italian suit and red leather loafers. And while he, too, had perfect features, they seemed even more perfect than his companion’s; almost beyond perfect, definitely something one didn’t see every day. He had a Greek nose, thin red lips, slightly curved at the corners, which gave the impression that he was very used to smiling and retained that trait even on his resting face. Also, he had long straight hair that supposedly ended somewhere on his back, she couldn’t see, and it was jet black (so saturated in the colour it seemed to emit a bluish glow). Or perhaps it was the airport lighting fault, altering perfectly ordinary things by granting them freakish side effects.

However, what really threw her was the tone of their skin. It was unnaturally pale, as if the sun had not seen it for ages. Perhaps they lived somewhere in the North? Where there was practically no sun? None whatsoever?

Well, she was not really that tanned herself, considering she has lived in Arizona for the last decade and a half, discounting those summers spent in Forks. Bella shuddered to think what would happen to her complexion now that she was set to permanently move to the cloudiest and rainiest geographical location in the US. Maybe white will suit her as well? Unlikely, but you never knew, right?

They were so beautiful, it was terrifying to behold.

They were so beautiful, it hurt to look at them; perhaps that’s why people chose to ignore the couple and their numerous occupied seats, completely. Which was eerie as fuck. Made Bella think she was missing a huge plotline that, ironically, was obvious to all the others in the room, except for her.

Nevertheless, she decided that despite them being aesthetically pleasing to the eye (a grave understatement, Bella; she was beginning to suspect she had a gift for those) they were right jerks for hogging so much space while others were sleeping on the floor. _Who did that?_

She had almost reached them, when the man (who, of the pair, was the closest to her and up until now appeared to be in the middle of some kind of a meditative trance) opened his eyes and looked directly at her. His eyes were like two black holes with no light whatsoever reflected in them (Bella wondered whether he was one of those rare individuals who had completely black irises. Like the silver eyed people, or the red eyed people, or people with purple eyes, which were all so rare they essentially became a myth).

As she came even closer to the strange pair (Bella wondered if they were married), the young woman looked a bit spooked, but the man’s expression slowly changed from expressionless to curious to brimming with fascination, right until she stopped a few meters before them.

This was starting to get really weird but Bella was too drained of energy and desperate, and found the prospect of camping on the cold hard floor too miserable to not see this matter through. So she braced herself and hoped for the best.

“Um… Hi. Is this seat taken?” she gestured with her free hand (the one which was not currently dedicated to nervously clutching to the belt of her bag) to the closest seat to the gate.

“Not at all,” the stranger took a quarter of a second too long to answer for it to be completely genuine. Then his face rearranged itself into an honestly warm and welcoming expression, and he added, “You are most welcome to join us.”

It seemed like a completely normal thing to say, on the surface, but Bella had an odd feeling he was not talking only about sitting in the chair beside them. It sounded indecently open ended, as if she had been invited to join them for a lot of things, what exactly, she had no idea, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to find out.

He had a slight accent, Italian, perhaps. On second thought, they really did look quite foreign, maybe they really were from Italy, visiting their friends or estranged family in the States for the Christmas holidays, just like every other single person here… except for hitting on underage girls in an airport, that is.

“Right, of course. Sure. Thanks.” Bella jumped for the n-times-before-mentioned seat and closed her eyes in mortification, for a beat. She had a strong urge to press both her hands to her mouth to stop the babble coming out of it, but sadly it was too late to take it back. The man just continued to smile at her and seemed quite entertained. _By Bella_.

She took a deep breath and tried to will the weirdness out of the situation. Looking at all the people in the hall and listening to the crying baby helped, a lot. Everything was fine. _Just fine_.

If she was being honest, it felt as if something that was meant to happen in her life had just happened, like the click of a door closing, as if meeting these two people was something that was presupposed to happen to her eventually. A very strange thought, but Bella couldn’t shake off the truthfulness of it.

She looked to the opposite wall to the digital clock and saw the time: 23:57. That meant more than an hour’s wait till she could finally leave this hell hole of a waiting room.

Bella decided to attempt reading her book; it wasn’t likely she would be able to sleep here anyway, what with _Richie_ crying and the company she found herself in. Her hand caught the cover of the book –

“Are you travelling alone?” Bella startled and felt her book slip from her fingers, deeper in the bag. She turned to the strange man and saw him giving her a curious look. _Was he for real?_ Bella was sure she looked rather thrown at his attempt at small talk. Why did he want to now if-

“Forgive me, dear. What I meant was-”, he gave her another small smile and indicated to the empty seat between them, “is nobody else coming? You look quite young to be travelling all by yourself.” No, that was presumptuous and uncalled for. _She was not a child._

“I’m seventeen, thank you very much,” not that he needed to know that about her. “Lots of even younger people than me travel alone all the time.” Maybe it was not as common in his country? She supposed that was a possibility.

“Ah, I meant no offence. I confess I am not as accustomed to the American Airlines policies as I, perhaps, should be,” he gave her a small self-depreciating smile; it did not suit him. “Are you visiting family, then?”

Bella was still unsure about continuing to humour this man. She supposed he seemed benign enough, and given his obvious foreign origin, his initial offer to 'join them' could be just that, a polite phrase that is used frequently in Italy, Europe, _somewhere_.

Besides, he was _interesting._ Maybe she even wanted to know more about him. _Him and his stunning companion._ Were they actors? She was sure she hadn’t seen any movies with them, however, she was not exactly what some would consider a connoisseur of foreign films, by any definition.

“I’m going to my dad’s for Christmas,” after a pause she reluctantly added, “it was meant to be a surprise, but now...” She supposed she could call Charlie, fess up and ask him to bail her from Seattle. If things went like this, the bus drive might just kill her.

“A surprise, you say.” Suddenly he looked unreasonably happy. _Was he bipolar?_ “I do so love surprises! Why, Renata,” he leaned back in his chair and offered a chance for Bella to see his companion who smiled warmly at her and offered a quiet ‘Hello’, “and I are doing practically the same thing!”

“...How come?” _Now this should be interesting._

“We are travelling to visit my dear friend Carlisle and his lovely family for Christmas as well. You see, he’s a doctor and only recently moved to this lovely, remote town, practically by the ocean side, and _we thought,_ ” he bumped his shoulder to Renata’s, “that he could use a friendly face in yet an unfamiliar place.”

“It had a very distinct name, something cutlery-” he turned to Renata who gave the man a funny look but retained a pleasant air about her. _Looked like her companion’s excitement was contagious._

“Forks,” was her utterly unexpected answer.

“ _Forks?!_ ” No way. _No way.This was unreal. Coincidences like these just did not happen. Nope._ “Sorry. Are you sure?”

Now it was time for them to look at her like _she_ was the weird one. _Ha! As if they could afford doing that._

“Yes. Quite sure. The name _is_ rather peculiar... I understand your disbelief, but trust me, the town is indeed called Forks.” Now he seemed to take on a worried expression. _Could be because she still must have looked inordinately shocked by the name._ “Is something the matter, dear?”

“…My dad lives there. He’s the chief of police. So, I guess we’re heading to the same place.” Hmm, they did look a bit stunned, for a second. Until the man’s expression promptly switched back to overjoyed.

“Then we are practically neighbours already! Isn’t that _marvellous_? Surely, it must be that Fate wanted for us to meet here.” Was she hearing things again, or did he seriously said ‘fate’ with the capital F?

 _He was funny._ Bella decided that she sort of liked him.

“Uh…what do you mean?”

“Why, we must travel together then! Surely you are too young to hire a car,” Bella could practically feel how her eyes got bigger and bigger, like that white owl’s from that Harry Potter movie when she and the boys were about to be hit by the train. “We couldn’t _possibly_ let you go by bus, and the like, considering we are headed to the same destination.” He was serious. _He was absolutely serious._ How _could he be serious??_

“Do you not agree, Renata?” _This was not happening._

“Of course I do,” she indulged him; Bella noticed that she too had some kind of exotic accent. Then she turned to Bella in a way that screamed ‘responsible adult’, “We would be happy to take you. There is absolutely no inconvenience whatsoever.”

Bella looked to the still as of yet nameless stranger, who’s entire expression seemed to convey the words “ _See? I told you so!_ ” and wondered how he could look so happy and excited over helping some girl surprise her father.

“I don’t know...” _And she really didn’t know._ She shouldn’t even be thinking of agreeing. This was the sort of stranger danger parents always warned their children about, wasn’t it? _But_ … “I don’t even know you.”

 _And was the man pouting?_ He seemed lost in thought for a moment until -

“Look at it this way – there is not a chance that your father, the chief of police, doesn’t know Carlisle, the only neurosurgeon in Forks. We have friends and family in common. Also, you could surprise him without the added trouble of taking a ferry and a bus to Forks.” That… did sound rather reasonable -

And then he just _fucking had_ _to_ add: “We are practically friends ourselves, are we not? You, me, and Renata.” _What a strange, strange man._ But… he looked so delighted. Maybe he did not have many friends beside this Carlisle person?

“You haven’t even told me your name.” _Nor had Bella._ He slowly blinked, once, as if he was completely baffled by himself. Beside him, Renata coughed, which sounded more like an aborted laugh than a cough to Bella.

“How… utterly remiss of me. Indeed, I have not. Let us do this the proper way, shall we?” he extended his manicured hand to shake hers. “My name is Aro Volturi.” _A_ s _trange name for a strange man_. Bella looked at it, then thought, _to hell with it_ , shrugged and grasped his wintery hand over the empty seat with her own considerably warmer one, in what she expected to be a quick handshake.

“Bella Swan,” her lips curved into a genuine, barely there smile without her trying.

The handshake turned out to be an extended one as the man would not let go. She tried tugging her hand from his grasp lightly, at first, and when she failed to do so, she yanked it out of ~~the stranger’s~~ Aro’s grip forcefully, and shot him a dirty look. He started chuckling, but there was an astonished look on his face. As if he had discovered that something, which he had previously believed was a fundamental truth, was not a truth at all.

Then he returned his full attention to Bella, “It is so very nice to meet you, Bella Swan. I just know we will become the best of friends!” and gave her a smile, full of perfectly white and sharp teeth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is Aro creepy in this? I think he is. Is Bella being a bit too naïve here? Of course, she is. However, she _is_ only 17 and they _are_ so nice and pretty, and Aro’s _charming_ , and yes, Bella, this is _exactly_ the kind of stranger danger parents warn their children about.


	3. Are you an only child?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro reminisces about the most emotional moments of his existence. 
> 
> aka
> 
> A little bit of background info on Aro and the Volturi coven, and a little bit of nice, juicy interrogation.

Unbelievable.

_Unbelievable._

Completely and utterly _unimaginable_.

He had no words. He _never_ had _no words_.

Aro could hardly process his disbelief, the _shock_ , over the last eleven point two seconds when his hand had touched that of the unassuming slip of a girl’s, to see how _his_ gift worked on her, since the spectacular failure of Renata’s shield as it could not so much as slow the girl down (from what he had gathered from the brief, cursory brush of the pad of his fifth finger to the back of Renata’s hand), -only to find himself echoing Renata’s bewilderment.

He could not see anything, _hear_ anything, _feel… anything_.

Nothing.

As if the girl did not hold the barest of memories, the simplest of thoughts.

Which was clearly untrue, clear as the stars in the sky of a cloudless night above the Atlantic Ocean, for the girl was as coherent and responsive as the next human in this Fated airport.

Over his long existence, Aro had accumulated a number of noteworthy memories of events which had provoked unbidden emotions in him, overwhelming in their sheer authenticity and intensity, - unstoppable in their tremendous power, similar to that of a tsunami crashing over shoreline and sweeping _everything_ and _anything_ in its wake, so that for a few timeless moments, he seized to be himself and became pure feeling -

 **Fear.** When he touched a person for the first time since his turning and got drowned in their memories, in every significant and unimportant thought they had ever dared wonder about. Years of thoughts. Millions of thoughts, billions of memories of parents, friends, lovers, children, love, hate, passion, fear, kindness, knowledge, belief, the world, _everything_.

 **Madness.** For a while there, in his first years of this _New Life_ , he must confess, he went Mad. The thoughts were killing his sanity, gradually; every time he fed, and his lips pressed to the skin of a human and he would _See_ (many thought only his hands could transfer information. They were wrong. _Any_ touch counted). It had come to him killing his food first and drinking them second (an action that went slightly against instinct, his inner creature’s need, but during that time it was the only solution for salvaging the last remnants of his sanity he could think of that marginally limited the expanse of information flooding his mind). Later, he learned how to compartmentalise, how to direct the alien thoughts to a secure space, carved in his mindscape specifically for this reason, and archive them in a way that allowed recall but did not hinder living his own life. He had built whole cities in his mind to accommodate all the thoughts of all the humans (and vampires, and other supernatural beings) that he had touched in his long existence.

 **Pain.** He was selfish; he did not want his sister to die, like all the others were meant to, in the end. So he asked her if she wanted to become like him, and she said yes, and so he bit her, therefore becoming the cause of her going through the excruciating pain of burning. He was sure that witnessing her pain - watching her suffer and listening to her scream - was the most painful thing he had felt in his entire existence, before or after, including his own transformation. To add insult to injury, he knew **_he_ **was to blame for her torture.

 **Joy.** When he had finally succeeded in defying gravity and holding true to the myth of flying vampires. _Sicut vespertiliones_. The comparison was as ingenious and hilarious, as it was fitting. He’d have loved to meet the one behind the origin of the idea. He was quite sure he would have offered them immortality (if they indeed had been a human), regardless of whether they exhibited any potential for a gift or not.

 **Power.** He had been high on power. In the beginning of their true reign as the kings of the Vampire world, when they - Marcus, Caius and he – became the ruling force that ensured their laws were abided by.

 **Obsession.** _And he had never really gotten over this one, had he?_ Anyway, he was guilty of avarice too in this regard. He loved finding and collecting rare gems, vampires with powerful gifts that could be _oh so very useful_ to the Volturi coven and which granted them even more power and respect among their kind.

 **Despair** and **guilt.** **Grief.** When his sister slipped away from him (and from _Marcus_ and from their _family_ ) forever, in such a soul-crushing way. Some Guard members, which happened to be about in the city at that time of night when **_It_** happened and were in a position to have a clear view of her Death, had seen her flaming figure falling from the top of the tower. However, they saw something else as well – him standing still in the exact spot right behind where ~~Di~~ his sister had been a fraction of a second prior. Hence, they all thought that he was the one who had pushed her. That _he_ had set fire to her, with his own hands, to his _~~little sist~~_ ( _he would **never**_ ), the one single person to be by his side for the five (give or take a few) millennia of years. Everyone thought he had killed her. The Guard, his coven. _Marcus_. And because of the shocking despair he had slipped into, he did not correct them. Not that anybody would dare do anything to him about it. From what he later gathered of their thoughts, there was confusion as to why he had done it, incomprehension, anger, pain, but despite this, they still cared about him, even though every single vampire who knew him, or of him, and the horrific event was convinced he’d done it. Humans were food (true enough, but not necessarily so - _Hello, Carlisle!_ ), vampires sparkled in sunlight (only the lazy ones or the stupid ones, or the really young ones, who did not know how not to) and Aro had killed his own sister. This particular unfortunate rumour made him infamous throughout the Vampire world. It was a testament to his unpredictability, his mood swings, his jovial personality, the theatrical trials, which oftentimes lead to swift loss of heads. And fire. His ruthlessness. One could never know about their Fate, if he was involved. **_No one_** _was safe._ He _did_ know many considered him to be evil. _He’d heard it loud and clear after all_. Nobody could lie to him, not truly.

 **Love.** When he saved Jane and Alec and found out what it meant to have children of his own (as close to as any vampire could). Jane and Alec were the closest thing to immortal children there was. They were just old enough to understand, to learn, to master control over bloodlust, to grow, mentally. He was guilty as charged in this case, a complete hypocrite, for he had ordered many an execution of immortal children and their sires, whilst having done practically the same thing himself, almost (the other children had been so, so young. Too young, to be allowed to continue to exist. Jane and Alec had not been. Too young, that is. Barely not old enough, but it had made all the difference in the world. And it was one of the few times in his entire existence that he knew, by Fate, that he had done the right thing).

 **Surprise.** When Carlisle had found his coven in Italy and Aro learned compassion for human life could still be found within their kind. So much so that the vampire that would become one of his dearest _~~estranged~~_ friends and confidants had never drunk a drop from a human. They had tried to convert him, of course, his coven, but to no avail. In the end, many grew to like Carlisle, even if he was a weird one, and found this particular quirk of his _adorable_ , plus- none could deny that he was great company.

 **Rage.** When Sulpicia, his wife, was killed in a werewolf attack, organised by a proactive werewolf pack that had conspired to kill Caius’ Athenodora (no doubt to avenge their brethren Caius in his fear and hate had succeeded to hunt out near extinction) only for his darling Sulpicia to pay the price. When both of them, Sulpicia and Athenodora, had gone to Sweden to get away from going crazy in Volterra in 1903, and had been ambushed by the Children of the Moon, a fight had broken out and Sulpicia had saved Athenodora, on the expense of her own life. Together, they had managed to kill the pack of five with Athenodora finishing off the last surviving one. However, his wife had been bitten and there was nothing in the world anyone could do to save her. She didn’t even last two days before she perished.

 **Shock.** Well, this here is the latest most memorable moment and he is left speechless. His faith in the absoluteness of his gift, upturned. Bella Swan. _Was it short for something? (He’ll have to ask. Or consult her plane ticket.)_ But this surprise was a good one. And he was not angry or suspicious, nor did he harbour ill will towards the girl. On the contrary, Aro was becoming alarmingly interested in her, now that he knew next to nothing about her. She was a challenge. One he was determined to figure out. Because she will become one of _his_ , it was only the matter of time… and logistics.

This situation was one hundred per cent unprecedented.

He had never envisioned a possibility of ever finding someone capable of defying his gift (perhaps he had, once, in a time long forgotten, when he was as lost because of his Gift as a ship adrift in the sea; nevertheless, he had become overconfident in himself and his Gifted to overlook the potentially detrimental effect a vampire with a gift like Bella's could potentially cause). He was so very lucky that Fate had lead him to find her first.

He’d called dibs. She was his. And that was that. No other vampires, not even Carlisle’s veggie bunch could lay claim to her now.

Suddenly, he did not mind the crying child or the wait, or the hundred and seventy-eight beating hearts in the waiting hall. Nor did he mind his hunger (that much) or the fact that the girl’s scent was very pleasant, some would perhaps call it floral, but he could sense traces of peaches and tangerines in it, which to him was the more dominant and preferred flavour. Needless to say, she smelled very edible.

When one lived for five (give or take a few) millennia, one couldn’t _not_ became a picky eater, and so many humans had terrible dietary habits.

 _A shame, really_.

How many times had he gone hungry or been crabby for weeks after Heidi’s fishing had brought only junk food lovers, cannabis smokers, incurable alcoholics, nicotine abusers and addicts, or the rare yet undiagnosed terminally ill person with tainted blood which rendered the blood pretty much undrinkable (they did them a favour really, saving them weeks or months of painful suffering)?

And these habits, they reflected in the taste of the blood.

Disclaimer! **-** let it be known that he did not speak on behalf of every vampire out there. Some… _individuals_ , loved that kind of thing ( _because they had no palate)_. It was truly tragic and he almost felt sorry for them. Quite unpleasant, to be honest, to have to pretend to be unaffected by their choice of dinner and their apparent enthusiasm in consuming their meal. If they happened to be a visiting dignitary, for example, it was expected of him (and his coven) to put up with it and show no surprise, _or_ judgement. Dreadful.

If he happened to see this, there was practically no way he would willingly touch these disgusting excuses for vampires without his gloves on. He did not need such filth in his mind. For all he knew it could be contagious, and he did not want to find out if he was correct in his hypothesis. He had plenty of these thoughts in his archives already, from when he had no other choice but to absorb their memories, or was unable to observe the subjects in their natural element prior to acquainting himself with their thoughts. There was no need to overbalance the scales and potentially catch something truly nasty.

(Though, to be fair, inexcusable feeding habits or preferences were nothing in face of truly inexcusable inclinations, which oftentimes prompted unexpected detachment of heads, for no visible reason at all. No wonder they feared him, as they should. He tolerated swearing, so much swearing; he categorically refused to tolerate despicable and deprived actions and intentions towards one’s pray or fellow vampires.)

 _And would you look at that_ , his main train of thought had flown off on a tangent yet again.

Bella Swan.

Aro could not _wait_ to find out how she fared as one of them!

He just _knew_ that she will be _magnificent_ (and this was his intuition talking, and it was _never_ wrong).

But how to better go about adding her to his Lovely ~~Collection~~ ~~Coven~~ _Family_?

He knew he was behaving somewhat out of character, considering the incredulous looks Renata kept throwing his way and how downright ridiculous she found his performance of convincing the girl to willingly join them for their journey onwards.

All right, the moment of truth, this deception could and most likely _would_ backfire spectacularly on him later on (he’ll have to try to tone it down a bit), but he could not let the human out of his sight. Human lives were so very fragile, after all.

One accidental twist of an ankle, followed by one unfortunate fall, accompanied by a hit of the head against a hard surface at the wrong (or just the right) angle with the right (or just the wrong) amount of force and _voilà_ _!_ _One dead human, coming right up!_

Some perfectly healthy humans went to sleep and never woke up the next morning. _Sudden Unexplained Nocturnal Death Syndrome_ , was it? Accidents, traffic accidents, serial killings, muggings, animal attacks, vampire dinners, illnesses, all manner of things that extinguished human lives in a moment’s notice, long before their natural lifespans came to an end.

There one second, gone the next.

For forever.

Pity the girl was so young, just a baby, really. People reborn in their teens were suspect to greater scrutiny by the herd than those changed in the peak of adulthood (in their twenties and thirties). Nevertheless, she will not be allowed to remain human long enough to reach her twenties. Too high of a risk of her dying.

When one lived for five (give or take a few) millennia, one could not fail to register the patterns Fate tended to weave. One of them being (and he was certain very few vampires had, so to say, _connected the dots_ ) – when a person encountered their species, in a way that mattered (he wasn’t talking here about simple things like passing by one of their kind on a street), _learned_ about what they were, these humans tended to die quickly after. Be it accidents or becoming a snack, as a rule, those unlucky humans did not live for long. Perhaps, it was Fate Himself, not wanting their secret to see the light of day, of perhaps it was the Magic that coursed through their veins, for what else could it be explained away as?

He fully and wholeheartedly believed they were beings of Magic as there, logically, could not be any other explanation. Their entire existence went against what was natural. They simply _should not be_. But they _were_. He believed that someone _or_ some _ones_ many millennia of years ago, had dabbled in things they did not understand, or better yet, had learned to understand and had unleashed monsters on their own kind either way. Perhaps, they were curious to see what would happen. If they could achieve it. Or, perhaps, they thirsted for immortal life and were willing to pay any price asked of them, make any sacrifice.

He supposed, it _could have been_ an accident.

However, _coincidences like these... they just did not happen._

These humans, who came to learn about vampires walking the earth, had to be killed or changed rather quickly, lest they die unexpectedly, or be _protected_ until a suitable time came for them to be safely turned into one of the undead.

It was almost as if their old life had ended so that the new one could begin, or not begin.

A spontaneous giggle burst out of him.

Sometimes, Aro couldn’t follow his sense of humour, and he wondered if it had a mind of its own.

He turned back to the girl: “It is so very nice to meet you, Bella Swan. I just know we will become the best of friends!” and gave her a bright smile. _Teeth! Just spell it out to her that you’re a vampire already, why don’t you._

Well, the girl did look a bit taken aback by his razor sharp smile, but no major warning bells seemed to have gone off in her head. She did not appear to be frightened by him, more unnerved, by both of them, in general.

Thank Fate, some people had dulled instincts when they unwittingly encountered monsters masquerading as the embodiments of angels.

However, it should be taken into consideration that he did know how to be charming, how to _compel_ humans to do as he pleased.

Most vampires were more or less skilled in this particular art. Why, he and Renata had used this exact skill to take their _many_ belongings together with them during their previous flight from LA to San Francisco, despite it most evidently being against airline regulation. And they fully intended to dazzle the next person responsible for ensuring that this kind of thing did not happen, into allowing them clear passage, all three suitcases in tow.

“Yeah… Likewise.” Bella did not sound as convinced, the poor dear, but she will learn.

“Excellent. It is decided, then!” _Oh, this is going to be so. much. fun!_ “We’ll join together in the endeavour to surprise the people we hold dear above all others in the world, like Carlisle! For Christmas is -” only to be interrupted by his darling Renata -

“ _Perdonami, Padrone, ma forse non dovresti esagerare?_ ” His teeth clicked together, momentarily, and audibly. _Well_ , she was not wrong, was she?

“Bella,” Renata spoke in a slightly conspiratory fashion against him, “we’ve _all_ heard _so much_ about _Carlisle_ already.” She leaned slightly closer to Bella, pressing against the back of his shoulder, “ _You have no idea_ , how much.” Renata was a gem, she was, she was, “Perhaps you could tell _us_ about _your_ friends in Forks? I’ll be forever in your debt.”

_Was the girl smirking? And blushing? Why would she-_

“Yeah, sure. I guess I can do that.” Bella said as she took a moment to gather her thoughts.

“Um, I suppose there’s Jake, he’s a bit younger than me, but such fun to be around. Oh, and then there are his older twin sisters, Rachel and Rebecca. Though, I haven’t seen them since the last time I was in Forks. We used to play and spend time together down at the reservation of La Push, right by the ocean. Charlie – that’s my dad – he’s friends with their father, so… ”

Interesting, has she been away from the town long? Months? _Years,_ even? And she’s returning now… Why? Is it only for the holidays, just to surprise her father, or is there a deeper reason, which she’d kept to herself? He’d bet his gold on the latter.

Fascinating. To not know, for a change.

“Twins?”

“Well, yes. I guess they’re in college now. Maybe they’ll be home for Christmas though…” _Should he or shouldn’t he?_ Jane will torture him for hours if she ever learns about this, but… _When in Rome_ … it is unlikely to get back to her anyway.

“I have a couple of my own back home in Italy,” he could feel Renata near imperceptibly stiffen behind him; clearly she did not think he would take a route that involved mentioning the twins in this ~~conversation~~ interrogation. “Jane and Alec. They did not want to come see Carlisle all this way, surely you must know how teenagers could get sometimes.”

“You have _kids_?” Bella seemed visibly shocked, as if there was something deeply wrong with him being a parent. Did he not look like he could be a father? Perhaps she was referring to his youthful appearance? _And why was he feeling offended all of a sudden?_

“Yes, I do. Twins. They’re thirteen. Such bundles of joy, _when they’re not busy angsting_. And before you ask, I may look young but I am not _that_ young.”

“Huh.” Bella looked from Renata to him to Renata again and frown lines appeared on her forehead, evidently Renata did not agree with his assessment. “So you really are Italian?” Aro could hear her almost inaudible mumble of _‘Iwasright’._

He nodded, but the frown was back on her face, “Jane and Alec. Doesn’t sound very Italian.”

“Their mother was British.”

Who was he kidding, he won’t be able to ensure Renata’s silence.

_(Hmm, he supposed, at this point, he rightfully deserved to be tortured by his little angel, he’ll ask her first thing when he sees her next, better to get it over with swiftly, before she hears of this from darling Renata…)_

“Was? So you two aren’t-” she broke off abruptly, her face gaining a slight rose shade, coughed, turned away her now flaming face and dedicated her full attention to the waiting people in the room.

Bella was turning out to be a very lovely creature, indeed.

_How positively adorable!_

“Oh, Bella, no, we _certainly_ are _not_ together!” Again, should he be offended? He was thinking he should start to.

He turned to face his lovely companion.

“ _Excuse you_ , Renata.” _Insubordinate little minx._ He looked back to Bella. “However, she is right. Renata’s my niece. The only one from the family, who agreed to accompany me. Did you perchance pull the short straw, dear? You can tell me, I promise not to exclude you from the will.”

Bella giggled, amused by their bickering. Lovely, her ‘collecting’ was progressing better than he could have hoped for.

“As for their mother, she passed away a few years ago. Tragic accident, very unexpected.”

His face had to be doing that thing again, where it adopted a sombre look, eyes full of remnants of dulled pain. _He always had to ruin the mood_. But Aro found he was unable to help himself. Sulpicia had been his best friend, his companion for countless centuries. One could not get over losing their best friend, even if it had happened years ago. What was one hundred years if one has lived for five (give or take a few) millennia?

“Oh, I didn’t- I’m sorry.”

He pulled himself together, tightly under his famed control. This show of weakness was counterproductive to his goal.

He gave a sweet smile to his unsuspecting, soon-to-be coven member-

“Nonsense, my dear. You have nothing to feel sorry about. It happened a long time ago.”

_It was time to divert the interrogation._

“Tell me, Bella, are you an only child?”

He was met with silence from her (for there was always noise, nothing was noiseless, not on the ground).

The girl studied him as if he was an exotic, extraordinary bug. This lasted for a few beats of her heart, and then the corners of her lips started twitching until she burst out laughing. Beside him, Renata shook in muted yet mirrored agreement.

“Are you… a… _fucking…_ _shrink_?!” She asked between gasping for breaths. Aro cringed. Why why why did she have to _swear???_

He knew this would happen, this _always_ happened. Without exception. People loved to use foul language, all the bloody time. He’d love to see if she would remain as brave to utter such profanities, if she were standing before him and his brothers in the throne room in Volterra-

“No, I am not, and I fail to see what it is you find so amusing about my question.”

 _Of course_ , Aro knew exactly why she was laughing. It was a very weird worded way to ask a person if they had any siblings.

However.

The purpose of this innocent question was for her to think him eccentric or just that much of a foreigner and forgive him other atypical future inquiries or actions without giving it much contemplation. She would most likely overlook the small things, and explain away the more significant ones with these established observations of his character.

And it wasn’t as if he was not eccentric _or_ a foreigner. He was both.

Bella had stopped laughing so she could finally answer, “Yes I am. No siblings. Just me.”

Ah, pity. It would be interesting to see if her brothers or sisters, if there had been any, were as talented as she, for obvious reasons. Oftentimes, if one of the siblings was gifted, so were the other(s). (One needed only look to Jane and Alec.)

Still, this was wishful thinking. Bella was more than enough…

Perhaps, he should orchestrate a meeting with her father, find out if there was somet-

“It must have been quite lonely for you Bella, growing up by yourself,” Renata said in a warm tone. _Had she taken a liking to the girl as well?_

“I guess. But I had my mom, and she was always more of a sister than a parent anyway…” the girls demeanour became more serious and bitterly thoughtful.

_Hmm, the mother’s a touchy subject. Noted._

Her troubled gaze travelled about the room again, when she did a sudden double take and zeroed in on their numerous suitcases.

“Can I ask you something, Mr Volturi?”

“Please, dear, call me Aro. We’re friends, remember? Besides, ‘Mr Volturi’ sounds so uncanny spoken in English.”

“All right,” she gave him a quick smile and leaned on her seat’s armrest, brushing a disobedient lock of her dark hair behind her ear. “Can I ask you something, _Aro?_ ” _Was she attempting to flirt with him, the charming creature?_

“Anything. Ask away.”

“ _Why_ … do you guys have _so many_ suitcases, here?”

“Noticed that, did you?” He magicked up a sour expression and then looked in her wide chocolate eyes. “Well, the simple answer is that we just couldn’t part with our luggage.”

“And the complicated one?”

“ _Well_ … it’s quite the fragile cargo, I’m afraid,” Aro further explained. “I shudder to think of the way it would be handled by the brutes uploading it on the airplane. Have you seen them in action? They just throw the bags in, violently, regardless of if you have the appropriate stickers on the suitcases or not. Awful business.”

“You mean you travel with what? ... Crystal vases and china cups in your baggage?” she lifted a graceful eyebrow, but did sound genuinely interested and entertained. Good.

“Carlisle’s wife is a professor of History of Art and Architecture, _as I have been told_ ,” Renata explained, rolling her eyes skywards, “so we thought we’d give her something special for Christmas. After all, we will be unexpected guests.”

“Think of it as a sort of apology, dear. Very old, very valuable Edo Period Japanese porcelain vases from my personal collection.” More like Sadami’s _old_ personal Japanese art collection-cum-Aro’s _new_ personal Japanese art collection. “I do wonder if she’ll find the bribe sufficient- ”

“I’m sure Esme will _love_ them, Uncle.” Renata smirked as he laughed out loud. _Uncle?_ She was enjoying this game too much. He’s never been called Uncle before. That he could remember. _There was no such thing as perfect recall, anymore, if one has lived for five (give or take a few) millennia, only the young ones could claim such folly._

“Soooo… You really want me to believe all these suitcases are full of fragile Japanese art?” her heavy disbelief was understandable. You’d have to be a complete imbecile to fully believe such obvious drivel.

“Only the one. The rest hold the more durable presents for Carlisle and his five adopted children…” - _as if he’d give those insolent brats **anything** \- _“...and a few of Renata’s and my personal things.”

_Wait for it wait for it wait for it wait for-_

“You’re kidding me, right?”

He just hummed good-naturedly and retained a happy, for all intents and purposes, innocent expression. He even shook his head a little, in clear denial. “I kid you not.”

“ ** _Five?!_** ”

“… that’s what I said.”

“Five.” Bella repeated in a deadpan tone.

“…cross my heart and hope to die.”

“…”

“I don’t believe you.”

Behind him, Renata started chuckling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Sicut vespertiliones (Latin)_ \- Like bats.
> 
>  _Perdonami, Padrone, ma forse non dovresti esagerare? (Italian)_ \- Forgive me, Master, but perhaps you shouldn’t overdo it. (At least this is what I was going for. Feel free to correct me on this one, if you’re Italian or speak Italian fluently and know how to translate this properly.)


	4. Interlude: Renata

Renata checked the time on the far wall for the umpteenth time and saw it was only 00:19. Which meant that the first call for boarding will be announced in ten to twenty minutes, so the plane could take off at the rescheduled departure time at 01:30.

Her Master had been successful in aiding in the disappearance of the thick fog – at the present moment, the fog has already withdrawn by sixty per cent since five in the evening, the previous day, when the first announcement of a chain of four consecutive delay announcements was sounded through the airport. By 01:00, there should only be vague traces of it lingering in the air surrounding the runways. Judging by the weather forecast just after the first delay, it had been expected that the fog would disappear (naturally) only in the morning, sometime between 7 am and 9 am.

Thus she could only conclude that this was her Master’s doing.

Usually, waiting for ‘prolonged’ periods of time would not mean much. To vampires. In general. After all, they had all the time in the world. _The perks of immortality_. Especially, if time was not of the essence, just like right now. A bit of waiting was nothing. Even if the airport was _packed_ with humans.

She had been so very grateful for her Master’s whimsical state of mind since the three bloody huge tundra birds bloodied their engines to the point of near catastrophic result. So very grateful. She could not have imagined that after twenty-two days spent in the latest mission in Japan that required her Master’s presence (meaning: twenty-two days spent away from Volterra – the longest her Master Aro had left the Castle for in the last two decades), he would be interested in extending their trip.

She had already come to terms with them returning to Volterra first thing after leaving Sadami’s manor, so, when her Master announced that he wished to pay his ‘dear old friend’ Carlisle a visit, since they had found themselves stranded on the West Coast, she was taken by complete surprise. A good one. A great one, even. She loved travelling the globe, something that was not readily accessible to her, anymore, not like it was to other Guard members like that _fucking asshole Demetri_ , who was away on the coven’s business more often than he was ever home in Italy. So, when her beloved Master said he would not wait for the jet to be repaired and not return home with the rest of the guard, but go see his old friend Carlisle Cullen, _Stregone Benefico,_ the Guard called him, she was elated.

Personally, Renata had never met Carlisle. He was her Masters’ guest in the early seventeen hundreds, while Renata was turned in 1728 at the age of twenty-six, and had joined the Volturi in 1802. So she had well and truly missed her chance of meeting him there, in Volterra. But she had heard bits and pieces from other Guard members and the wives, and her Masters, on occasion. And Aro considered him to be a dear friend, which, by itself, spoke volumes in his favour. The major consensus was that he was a nice vampire, albeit a bit weird, but in an adorable sort of way. Kind, intelligent, funny, very good looking, _blond_ , _and_ he had _golden eyes_.

She had never met a vampire with golden eyes. Sure, she’d heard of them, the ones in Alaska, the Cullens, of course, or the rare soul that other Guard members had bumped into during their travels all over the world, but had never seen for herself. Now, they were headed to visit seven golden-eyed ones. This was officially one of the _most exciting things_ to happen to her _ever!_ ( _Or_ in the last decade and a half).

Aro had, in fact, asked if anyone else of the Guard members wanted to join him and Renata (he’d asked her too, but it was not as if she had really been given a choice in the matter and could refuse. But still, it was nice of him to ask anyway. And it was not as if she did not want to come with him, there wasn’t anyone waiting for her at home in Volterra either way. Honestly, she was very much in favour of this little _Christmas detour_ of theirs. Plus, there was the chance of meeting new people, seeing new places… overall, she was pleased. And _thankful_.

To the utter surprise of no one, all the rest of the Guard members, except for Jane, immediately diverted their eyes and started talking all over themselves, loudly proclaiming their plans for the next fortnight that were _totally and irrevocably_ set in stone and could not be changed **_no matter what_** , some claimed exhaustion, some even went for the excuse of seeing their sires (those who had them outside Volterra) for Christmas. Oh, yes, _Christmas_ had suddenly become _a thing_.

Her absolute favourite was Felix’s: “I’d love nothing more than to go visit Carlisle, _that old sport_ , with you, but I am expected in Marseilles at my thirty-four-times-great-granddaughter… Louise’s for Christmas holidays. Her family’s very religious, you see… very Christian. I couldn’t find it in myself to say no. It’d break her fragile little human heart if I missed the celebration. You must know this, Master Aro.” He even went as far as to offer Aro his hand, _to check for himself_ , to which her Master threw such a disdainful glare, Renata was genuinely surprised it did not ice over.

It wasn’t exactly the case that none of them wanted to go see Carlisle. As she’d already mentioned, everyone quite liked him, considered him pleasant company. The problem was rooted in his _lovely_ _little family_. She’d heard some things after yet another guard member had crossed paths with the Cullens. Not exactly flattering things. About his ‘children’. 

As far as she knew, the wife was all right, there was never anything bad said about her, the problem, _the problem_ , was the kiddies.

Edward, _Carlisle’s firstborn_ , was a quote unquote “snobbish, depressed, self-hating little shit that radiated misery, was prone to disrespect and happened to be a telepathic mind-reader” to boot. Delightful combo, if you asked her.

Rosalie, Carlisle’s second childe, was described as cold but _very_ beautiful. Her mate Emmett, on the other hand, was quite well received. He was easy going, had a sense of humour, if at times a bit juvenile, but, overall, Emmett was a happy vampire, one could even say the most positive one of all the Cullens.

Emmett was not the problem.

 _Alice_ , _however_.

That little pixie witch was a pain for all. _The Seer_. Could predict almost everything that would happen. She just _knew too much._ The biggest dislike for her from the Guard members arose from the fact that she was not shy of sharing the knowledge her gift provided her, unlike most sensible seers had done before her. She did not respect people’s privacy, would disregard the very real possibility of someone not wanting their future revealed to them, much less shared with others. She and Edward, _The Know-It-Alls_ , were similar in this regard, they both exhibited utter lack of decorum and very much liked to flaunt their gifts; let’s just say, they did not make many friends in the Volturi. Renata’s guess was that life had not yet come around to teach them the hard lesson of minding their own damn business _._

Lastly, there was Alice’s mate/husband/ _boyfriend?_ Jasper Whitlock. The empath. Most of the Volturi held respect for the former major. After all, having lived the life he was dealt, having seen death and destruction in such monstrous quantities, while feeling every last bit of it, and survived, one had to be very lucky and very talented, and had to possess deadly skill and emotional strength, which her coven could appreciate. He was aloof, but _sensible_. Which was a breath of fresh air (if the guard members were to be believed), given the company he kept.

Renata could very well understand why no one wanted to come with.

Well, Jane would have come, there was very little she would not do for her Master, but Aro thought it would be for the best if she returned home and delivered the swords to Caius, before he threw a tantrum and killed the new secretary, _again_. It was ever so hard to find good employees. And this one was becoming a favourite among the Volturi.

After the last seven secretaries had been killed by Caius, Demetri, Felix, Felix, Caius, Demetri and Caius, respectively, in no more than bare five months’ time, Aro had had enough and had finally set his foot down, so to speak, and had issued a New Vampire Law, seconded by Marcus. (Aro had had been Seriously Pissed Off, it had been truly frightening to watch). 

The New Law stated that from henceforth, **only Aro had the privilege of killing their secretaries** , regardless of their possible or proven incompetency. Renata supposed the DO NOT KILL THE VOLTURI SECRETARIES came right after DO NOT EXPOSE VAMPIRES TO HUMANS, DO NOT CREATE NEWBORN ARMIES and DO NOT CREATE IMMORTAL CHILDREN.

Needless to say, there would be hell to pay if this law was ever broken. She did not believe even Master Caius would escape Aro’s wrath. Fortunately, he was still sane enough to heed the warning.

Given that Allegra, the last secretary, was killed by Caius because she was helping with a task set by Alec, Jane and Heidi, and thus was not present when he happened to have need of her, Aro had entrusted the task of finding the next replacement to the trio.

Now, this was not common knowledge, it was rather _hush-hush_ at the moment (she knew of this only because Heidi was her best friend and told her everything), but the witch twins and her friend had been quite angry with Caius over the matter, and had decided to fuck with him and the rest of the coven and the guard who made it habit to snack on their secretaries.

They had gathered quite the candidate pool, with the pretence of needing to find a new Secretary for the Castle ASAP; the provided _very_ original reason if asked was that ‘the previous one had left unexpectedly, without giving any notice’. They had quadrupled the salary, which had been quite appealing to begin with, so the position would appear even more tempting. Thus they had one hundred and forty-eight applicants from Volterra and the 50 kilometre radius in under 72 hours.

In the end, they had chosen a nineteen year old Italian-American girl, Phillippa Camilli - dark haired, blue eyed beauty, tall but delicately built, smart, had a voice of an angel and spoke Italian and English perfectly, and French passably, had a mother, a stepfather, and a little brother, _and_ she was a greedy little thing that wanted to save some money to be able to afford to attend an Art School in Florence.

 _Another_ fine quality of hers was her insanely sweet smelling blood. She smelled like strawberries and whipped cream in a late morning sea breeze. Utterly mouth-watering. And she was off limits. And she meant OFF LIMITS.

Needless to say, Phillippa Camilli drove the coven and the guard Crazy.

Caius hated her (or pretended to hate her, on principle).

After the first two hours on the job, Phillippa had come to the inevitable conclusion that they were freaking, honest-to-God vampires and that she won’t be leaving for Florence anytime soon, _or ever._ She’d had a twenty minutes long breakdown in the restroom on her lunch break that first day, and she’d probably understood that her life expectancy had been reduced to weeks, months, if she were lucky, and if she so much as told _anyone **anything**_ , her and her family’s lives would be forfeit. So she had accepted her Fate, as Master Aro loved to say, pulled herself together, and likely decided that she would be the best God damned secretary they had ever had, so there was a slightly bigger chance of her living longer. And so, there wasn’t even a sound enough reason to get rid of her.

It was Hilarious, if you thought about it, but all, except for Caius, had come to like the girl. Felix, the serial secretary killer, even harboured a badly hidden crush on the poor girl.

Funnily enough, to Renata’s mind, the girl did not even consider herself a candidate for becoming one of them. She was tempted by the money, not by immortality as all the previous ones, but she had never been given the full briefing, where the prospect of her turning was dangled in front of her.

Phillippa had no idea.

The others, though. They all though she was in it for the same reason as all the other secretaries before her (except for Heidi, Alec and Jane, and now Renata; _they_ knew better).

There had been a lot of half-joking quips and the more-serious questions thrown around the Castle with increasing frequency as to when she will be changed, even if such a thing had never happened before, since the beginning of the practice of keeping secretaries had started in 1968. And Renata did not know if the girl would even want to become a vampire.

She was very interested in how this particular situation will unfold.

However, she had digressed.

_Jane._

Jane would have accompanied Aro and Renata, but in addition to safely and soundly delivering the blades, and seeing to Caius not doing anything stupid, that he would later dearly regret, Aro had thought she would not be received very warmly and would give off the wrong impression about their friendly visit (given her particular inclination to deal out pain like candy on All Hallows Eve). Her Master was smart enough to predict that some of the Cullens would not escape unscathed. It was a no-brainer, really, the girl was a sadistic little menace (did not stop her from being the one thing her Master loved above everyone else in the world).

_And Jane knew that._

Hence only the two of them had set out to find the Cullens in Forks, Washington, and in doing so met the mystery of Bella Swan.

Renata wasn’t sure what to think of the revelation. The girl had some _Serious Talent._ To be impervious to her gift? _Fine._ Renata could accept that. To be able to cancel out her Master’s gift (as she suspected)? _Unheard of._ And all this while Bella was still a human herself.

Renata did not know if she should feel sorry for the poor girl. However, the fact was – they would not let her be, as she was. Her old life was practically over. There was no way Master Aro was going to let her go live her life as she had intended. She belonged to ~~them~~ _Him_ now, Bella just did not know it yet.

Renata wagered that Aro was indeed genuine in his want to see his old friend and their _Christmas vacation_ was still on. And as the girl was, coincidentally, headed to the same small town in the middle of bumfuck nowhere, it seemed he was all for sticking them together and not letting her wander off five feet.

Which was curious. Her Master was behaving very uncharacteristically.

Sure, he was smiling and laughing, talking to the girl animatedly, cracking jokes, but for the most part, Renata liked to think that he _meant_ it. That it was not just a façade.

One of her responsibilities, entrusted to her without even saying, by the guard, was to _look after_ Aro during this trip, as they all had observed his gradual descent into increasing melancholy, coupled with erratic behaviour, for the past eleven months. There had been nothing major, just little things, but there had been _one too many_ a little thing, which had raised some red flags among Volterra.

It did not help that his last meal was roughly three and a half weeks ago.

Oh, she knew that it was not a big deal. Sort of. They could easily go for a month or even longer without sustenance, without experiencing any adverse side effects, however, taking into account their mission, the stress, the whole bloody and feathery, and foggy obstacles, thrown in their way, the noisy airport, the obnoxious baby… plus, now there was Bella Swan, their new almost-coven-member, who reminded her a bit of Phillippa in that her scent was simply mouth-watering.

And her Master had not had a human since the last tourist group was lead into the throne room. If she remembered correctly, _and she did_ , it was this little blond kid with pigtails in an ocean blue Cinderella dress, nothing more than an appetiser, really.

No wonder people were getting worried.

It would ease her mind greatly it he would have a proper meal, soon.

Not Bella, of course. She was off limits now, too.

_And heaven help anyone who so much as tried to touch a hair on her head._

What Renata (and the coven, and the guard) feared was an emergence of a (as she had been told in hushed whispers) similar depressive episode like the one in 1540 after he had allegedly killed his sister. She had been told he hadn’t eaten for close to a year. _A year_. It was never a good sign when vampires lost their appetite. Bad Things tended to happen.

Renata couldn’t help but laugh as she listened to her Master talk complete rubbish about the Cullens' “five adopted children”. _Jesus_. But it was funny how the girl played along to her Master’s antics.

They really got along spectacularly well, _didn’t they_ , given the quite overt kidnapping attempt that was, currently, progressing without a hitch.

“… cross my heart and hope to die.” _Really, Aro?_ That Cinderella must have left quite an impression.

Bella’s “I don’t believe you” was music to her ears. She’ll fit right in among them, she will.

“Renata. Darling. Back me up here.” Did her Master comprehend just _how_ out of character he was being around the girl?

“I will do no such thing.” Her Master looked crestfallen.

“Why ever not? Darling, you know I would _never_ tell a lie-” Aro started to pout again, although his eyes were dancing with humour.

“Okay, okay. _Fine._ ” She turned to Bella, “Bella. For once, my dearest _Uncle_ is telling the truth, Carlisle does indeed have five teenagers living in the house.” That was _almost_ true enough, wasn’t it?

“…If you say so.” Bella still looked sceptical, but, thankfully, let it go.

Then the human had the audacity to yawn.

 _Well_ , the girl _was_ cute, not unlike a small kitten. Adorable, fluffy, prone to hissing, scratching and biting down with its fangs but relatively harmless. _For now_.

Her Master’s lips parted to most probably make a teasing comment but Bella beat him to it –

“Yes, yes, it is way past my bedtime,” Bella responded to the unspoken question. “I get it.”

“I was only going to say that the boarding should star-” only to be interrupted by -

“ _Ladies and gentlemen, this is the pre-boarding announcement for American Airlines flight 67483 to Seattle -”_

“…-t every second now.” Aro smiled the cat who ate the canary smile. “And for you to be patient for a little while longer.”

 _“-_ _first we would like to invite any passengers travelling with small children and any passengers requiring special assistance to begin boarding at this time._ ”

The woman with the now silent, soundly sleeping baby, got up and proceeded to make her way to the gate. Other passengers that had been sleeping on the floor were waking by themselves or being woken up by their family, friends or neighbours.

“ _Please have your boarding pass and identification ready-_ ”, Bella’s hand slipped in her bag’s outer pocket, and half withdrew her ticket and passport.

And was her Master trying to _sneak a peek_ at her ticket?

Sometimes, when Renata let herself delve into the conundrum that was her Master, she soon found herself quite disturbed by the way his mind must work. She was confident there were not many who dared to think overly long and hard about the issue. After all, all it took for Aro to know precisely what they thought of him was a careless touch of his hand, not that he gave two fucks about what people thought of him, most of the time.

“ _Regular boarding will begin in approximately five minutes._ ”

“Sooo.. I guess I’ll see you guys in Seattle?” _if only it was that simple_.

“What are you talking about, my dear?” _There won’t be a chance of you running, Bella, don’t you even think about it_ , “You are most definitely flying together with us!”

“Aro… I hate to break it to you, but I’m in group 6, which is definitely not the one you guys must have.” The girl seemed quite out of her depth, but despite this stood her ground.

“What my dear Uncle Aro is trying to say is that we have plenty of extra space bought as we like to travel in comfort. …And we had to think about accommodating our fragile luggage.” How she managed to say this with a straight face and an even tone, she’ll never know. “There is enough room reserved for Aro, me, our suitcases and for five Bellas, if we so wished.” She winked and the girl’s breath caught for a second. Her Master threw her a speculative glance, _whatever that meant_.

“You bought out half of first class?” Bella weakly questioned, half incredulous, half accepting of her Fate.

Renata could get where Bella was coming from, because this was overkill for a simple domestic flight with a duration time of one hour and twenty something minutes in flight. Adding boarding and deboarding time, the estimate rounded up to more or less two hours.

And her Master was not helping things. _At all_.

“Of course.”

“…Of course. _Silly me_.” The girl seemed to be truly resigned from the situation. “Okay. _Okay_ … But, are you sure this is, like, _allowed_?”

Her Master gave her a perplexed look, “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“ _Uh_ … nevermind. No reason.”

“ _Ladies and gentlemen. We are now boarding all passengers in group 1 and 2 for the flight_ _67483 to Seattle_ _._ ”

“This is us.” Renata stood up and wrapped her deceptively delicate fingers around two of their suitcases’ handles, while her Master secured the third one and gently wrapped his remaining free hand around Bella’s upper arm, to prevent her from falling, as she lost her balance yet again, not dissimilar to the time when she made her quick escape from the screeching hellspawn. The girl clearly had not expected that, as her eyes regained that deer in headlights look from before.

“Careful, _Isabella_ , you wouldn’t want to scare us by cracking your skull open, would you?” The only saving grace after such a comment was his soft and ‘genuinely’ worried voice and his empathetic expression. … _Isabella?_

The girl was definitely not accustomed to being touched this way by perfect overly friendly strangers (even if they proclaimed to be her friends after knowing her for fifteen minutes).

She tried to take one step back, out of his grasp, but her Master took one forward. _Talk about awkward_.

“Um... Thanks. For catching me.” She was attempting and failing spectacularly to fight off a blush. _Aro had no shame_. And what else was new?

“Don’t worry, dear, as this seems to be a permanent condition for you, be rest assured that I’ll do my best to catch you next time as well.”

Bella straightened her spine and lifted her chin upwards, a little. “I’ll have you know I was a ballerina once.” 

“ _Really_. Do you have photographic evidence?” Her Master was grinning, showing off his scalpel sharp teeth. _Again_.

“I have it all on film,” was her blunt answer.

“You don’t say… Can I see?” Her Master’s bare, gloveless hand was slowly but inevitably sliding down the girl’s sleeve until Aro, almost imperceptibly, slipped his hand in hers.

“Sure,” Bella replied, and Aro’s grin started to stretch -, “ _over my cold, dead body_ ,” - and turned into a shark smile.

“That can easily be arr-” Renata’s five inch stiletto heel found the toe of his soft leather loafer with deft precision, and ground down. Hard.

“ _Perdonami, Padrone, vuoi che lei creda che siamo assassini seriali?_ ” she asked in a sweet voice.

“ _No_ , _non ancora_ _._ ” Aro sighed, “ _Sai, a volte non sei divertente, carissima._ ”

“ _Naturalmente._ ” Renata smirked but then lost her cheer as she glanced at Bella, who was trying to keep up, but it was clear she had no idea what they were saying. “ _Potresti spaventarla..._ ”

“You _do_ know that it’s rude to talk in Italian when you know I don’t understand what you’re saying, right?” She tried to cross her arms over her chest, but couldn’t, as one of her hands was held captive by Aro’s.

And that frown was back on her face.

“We apologize.” They both said in unison.

“Right.” She huffed a laugh. “And you won’t do it again?”

Renata made eye contact with Aro for a quarter of a second, and they promptly replied in unison again, -

“No, of course not.” Bella was sporting a puzzled look, and muttered under her breath something that could only be ‘ _you’resofuckingweird_ ’.

“Come, Isabella.” Her Master proceeded to pull her by her hand towards the gate and the person responsible for admitting passengers on board. “It wouldn’t do for us to miss our boarding call, now would it?”

Either the girl couldn’t think of any excuse to refuse him, or just went along because it was the polite thing to do, or the prospect of flying first class was too tempting, because she allowed to be dragged forth by Aro without further protest.

“Hello, I’m Tiffany and welcome to …”

***

The girl was soundly sleeping in the large, comfortable looking off-white seat facing the two perfectly identical ones she and her Master was currently occupying. There was a small coffee table that was placed between the two pairs of chairs, which gave a weak attempt at providing an illusion of privacy between the facing pairs.

Bella was out cold in the one closest to the window, her head had slipped partly on her shoulder, while partly still pressing against the headrest, her lone bag having been set in the adjacent one. Every minute or so, she soundlessly moved her lips, already consumed by a dream.

Her Master was sitting directly opposite the girl, watching and listening with rapt attention, every little unconscious movement and sound, made by her in her dead to the world state, observed and imprinted in his memories.

Renata could only confirm what they already saw in the first moments they had laid eyes on her in the airport’s waiting hall – the child was exhausted.

It was 01:53, Wednesday, December 22, 2004, and right this moment they were flying somewhere over Redding. The flight had not been delayed further and the plane had departed as rescheduled at 01:30.

The girl had valiantly tried to stay awake but had succumbed to her sleep-deprivation thirteen minutes into the flight.

Renata slowly turned her head to Aro, and asked in a very low and very quiet voice, as not to wake the sleeping girl: “How are we to proceed?”

Her Master’s gaze did not leave the sleeping child, “I’ve not yet decided.” He answered in the same volume as Renata. “But I can tell you this – she _will_ be one of us. And she’s not to leave our sight, before it happens. Or after.”

“Yes, Master.”

“She is _marvellous_ , isn’t she?” he whispered and leaned over the table to lightly trace Bella’s face, a ghost of a touch from the corner of her eye, over her cheek and down to the chin. His thumb ghosted over her slightly parted lips.

“Is she immune to your gift as well, Master? Can you truly not see anything from her?” She asked, but it was evident he could not.

“Not a _single_ _thing_ , Renata. Nothing. _Complete silence_. As if she were not here at all. Even while sleeping, when her mental defences should have, in theory, weakened, there is still nothing to be found. ”

“And to think she walked right to us, practically gift-wrapped on a silver platter,” Aro shook his head. “ _Another swan that just so happened to collide with us._ This is Fate’s doing, I’m certain of it.”

“Of course, it is.”

“Do not mock me.” Cold steel seeped into her Master’s voice as he chided her.

Renata bowed her head, “Forgive me.” 

“ _Isabella Swan._ Our little Christmas present.” And to her complete and utter disbelief he started to _hum the tune to Mariah Carey’s_ “ _All I Want For Christmas Is You_ ”. She’d never thought she’d live to see the day…

After a while he quieted down. “I want to hear what you think of the matter.”

Renata pursed her lips and closed her eyes before answering. “She… her gift… will be exceptionally powerful, once she becomes one of us.”

“Of that, I have no doubt.”

“I’d say, a shielding ability, like mine, only stronger, of course. Maybe something extra, as well. It’s hard to say at this point, as you well know. But,” her Master remained silent beside her. “Her gift… it could take time for her to master it to its fullest potential.” She looked at him, and hesitantly continued -

“You should not expect miracles from her right away, Master Aro.”

“I see. And I won’t. Thank you, dear.” He gave her one of his truly genuine smiles, the ones reserved for Jane and Alec, and his brothers, the ones which made his eyes smile, too. “Of this you need not worry. I _can_ control myself, contrary to the popular belief.” He set his elbow on the armrest to support his chin against his palm. “We’ll help her, then.” _Still smiling_. It was such a relief to see him so happy and excited. After months of -

“Of course, Master, you have my word.” And after three of Bella’s heartbeats passed, she decided to add, “I really, really like her. I think she will fit right in with the Volturi.”

“Naturally.”

“ _Naturally._ ” Renata parroted. She couldn’t but agree. “What about Carlisle? The rest of the Cullens?”

“Oh, my sweet darling Renata, Carlisle and his family is in for a treat. You and I,” and he threw a quick glance at the sleeping human, “and Bella, we are all going to have _So. Much. Fun!_ ”

Renata looked into her Master’s dark, laughing eyes that promised all kinds of devious mischief and _believed_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes! Four chapters in and we’re finally up in the air!
> 
> _Perdonami, Padrone, vuoi che lei creda che siamo assassini seriali? (Italian)_ \- Forgive me, Master, do you want her to believe we are serial killers? 
> 
> _No, non ancora. (Italian)_ \- No, not yet.
> 
>  _Sai, a volte non sei divertente, carissima. (Italian)_ \- You know, sometimes you are no fun, dearest. 
> 
> _Naturalmente. (Italian)_ \- Naturally.
> 
>  _Potresti spaventarla... (Italian)_ \- You might scare her...
> 
> (The same goes with this chapter: Feel free to correct any of the Italian bits, if you’re Italian or speak Italian fluently and know how to translate this properly. )


	5. Off your head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bella's kidnapping is still progressing as planned.

_“You’re mad, bonkers, completely off your head. But I’ll tell you a secret. All the best people are.”_ _  
― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland_

“Master?” Renata drew her eyes from the sleeping girl who had yet to wake. “How are we going to convince Bella to come with us to our hotel for the night?”

 _A very good question_. The girl had gone along with their suggestions until now, but nevertheless, her generous disposition could run out very soon. He’d wager this could easily be the last straw that broke to hypothetical camel’s back. It was one thing to fly together with them, when there were plenty of airline employees present, but quite another to leave with essential strangers for their hotel in the dead of the night when they insisted that they wanted her to accompany them. The chances of this not finally starting to ring at least _some_ bells for Bella were slim. _Well_ , if she truly remained completely unaware, he’d have to reassess the brightness of the girl and what it would mean for their future acquaintance.

 _Well, it would definitely be easier for now if she had no suspicions_ … however, it was unlikely.

“Simple. We won’t give her the chance to refuse.” Renata lifted a brow which he translated to ‘ _Do go on, I want to hear this’_.

“I would not worry this much in your stead, darling. She will still be half asleep because of her interrupted nap and the early hour, thus more easily susceptible to our influence.”

“Be that as it may…The human is not that stupid, Master.”

“No, I don't believe she is.” His lips stretched in a small, proud smile. “But she won’t protest. Much. I’ll make sure of it.” Frankly, he was sort of looking forward to playing _‘Kidnap Bella’_ in the coming hour. It could prove to be quite entertaining now that he thought about it.

“The suite does have a spare room, I take it?”

“Yes, I believe it does.”

“Then leave it up to me.” He looked to the gleaming stars outside for a minute, before looking back to the human. “Even if we do happen to frighten the girl a little, it will do no permanent harm. It will just be us, _having our way_.” Aro smirked but left it at that.

Renata snorted (and bit her lip to rein in her amusement) and shook her head in _mostly_ feigned disapproval. “Indeed. Just remember to not be too creepy about it, Master, and we’re golden.”

***

“ _Dear passengers, this is your captain speaking. We are currently flying over Riffe Lake and we have started descending from our cruising altitude of thirty-six thousand feet. We might be experiencing a light turbulence in a few minutes, so as a precaution, please fasten your seatbelts, and remain in your seats. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen._ ”

Aro was not overly keen on believing the soothingly smooth voice of the pilot. Although it might be true, as there has been quite the increase of cumulonimbus clouds in the night sky as they gradually neared Seattle (at least that is what he could observe from the window on his right) and as the plane had started to lose speed and altitude, the combination could, indeed, create turbulence. Theoretically.

There was just this _tiny little detail_ of something _else_ he could very easily observe from his vantage point that had given the captain’s statement the icy-sweet flavour of half-lies. Or rather, multiple _somethings_ else.

It looked like Aro and Renata had not seen the last of the whistling tundra swans yet.

There were two flocks of swans flying in wedge formation, not too far from the plane. Aro could only deduce that there were many more flocks of birds on the horizon, steadily nearing the considerably larger engines of the commercial aircraft. He mused, that it would be marginally harder to damage _both_ of the engines by the white unlucky harbingers of death, to the extent that the passengers’ lives were seriously endangered, but a few hits to the engines might still be felt. And if in luck, excused as turbulence.

There was no real need to spread panic among the passengers, was there? Aro could appreciate the captain’s subterfuge, this time.

Nevertheless, he leaned over the table and deftly secured the girl’s seatbelt as she had not even stirred during the pilot’s announcement.

“Well, Renata?”

She appeared to think for a second and a half.

“Three.”

He smirked.

“Five.” Aro replied.

A glint appeared in Renata’s eyes. “You’re on.” And immediately after, a slight impact to the left engine could be felt.

“Only four more to go!” Aro exclaimed and rubbed his hands together in glee.

“Don’t be so sure, _old man_.” (Darling Renata had a mean competitive streak.) “When I win, I expect to be handed the keys for the whole drive to Forks.”

“Without complaining **.** ” She then added.

“- _When you win…_ ” He shook his head. “Which is not going to happen. When **I** win, you are going to collect a car from the company’s headquarters. And hand _me_ the keys.”

Renata snorted. “Fair enough, I suppose.”

“Then it is a deal.”

As confident as his persona appeared to be over this bet, Aro really hoped that his guess will turn out to be the correct one. It was not exactly his sip from a vein, socialising with the employees of their company, especially after they had that lightbulb moment, and realised who he was. The heightened gushing that eddied around him when he was inevitably recognised by the staff as ~~the owner~~ one of the major shareholders of the company was dearly unwelcomed. Well, combine his identity with his attractive features, eccentric attire, his _accent_ , the fact that he was a rumoured billionaire, and despite his reputation as a recluse, the food, at least the segment of it that was not naturally inclined to be intimidated by these qualities of his, lost all sense of self preservation and tried to catch and retain his undivided attention.

 _It. was. **exhausting**_ **.** When the prey wanted a piece of him. Pieces. He’d much rather had Renata deal with this, and he knew that she did not awfully mind. Definitely not to the extent that he did.

Perhaps, it would be seen as too bold in the eyes of the denizens of the Vampire world, to have ~~his name~~ their name associated to such a famous international company, if its denizens had a clue that he was _**exactly that** Mr Volturi _and it was not purely a coincidence that the company’s name was an acronym of **_those_** _Volturi_. Anyway. Practically no one paid attention to this, and his name was not very well known outside the company’s staff as there were the Chief Officers that took the entire spotlight, usually. He did not know, but all evidence pointed to even Carlisle being blissfully unaware of the true ownership of their considerably successful legal side business. Even vampires needed to secure their capital somehow, and pay taxes to blend in.

Also, it helped that, for all intents and purposes, he could pass off as perfectly human (as long as no closer physical inspection to his person was attempted). As could his brothers. And his children. And Demetri. And most of the Guard. (All right, practically everyone from his coven, _not Felix_ , he did not have the temperament, and his extraordinary physical composition tended to frighten humans far too easily and effectively).

Another two consecutive hits to both engines brought slight tremors to the plane for a few seconds.

Aro regarded a rigid, stone faced Renata and in a singsong voice stated the obvious facts-

“Three hits in the last five minutes, and we have”, he looked to the clock above the exit, “approximately fifteen minutes until we reach Seattle.”

Renata ground her teeth together, “Precisely. Anything could _not_ happen in fifteen minutes.”

***

Aro was sitting cross legged on the chaise lounge placed at the large windows overlooking Elliott Bay and The Seattle Great Wheel, with his back to the rest of the room, and nursed a glass of white wine.

To keep up pretences, he had changed into a more holiday themed attire which consisted of black skinny pencil trousers and a white soft cosy oversized cashmere sweater that had partially slipped down his right shoulder. And he had tied his straight, waist long dark midnight-blue hair up in a high ponytail. He had put thought and effort into trying to appear harmless, for the human.

It was 9:55 am and Renata had left a couple of minutes ago to secure a vehicle for their use during the next part of their lovely Christmas escapade to clandestinely visit Carlisle (and the girl's father. After all, this might very well be the last chance she had to see him, before her inevitable, mysterious disappearance. Perhaps she will even be able to say goodbye and retain one more pleasant last memory of her short human life).

Renata out the door, he had proceeded to attack his ordered and the hotel staff delivered bottle of _1903 Chateau d'Yquem Bordeaux_ and had poured some in a large glass. She would no doubt be disappointed to see him substituting alcohol for blood.

Another thing that Renata had volunteered to obtain was a few sets of deep black coloured contact lenses for after his next meal. He was quite looking forward it.

But alas, it was not that simple.

For Renata had only brown ones for herself, carefully picked out to make her eyes look very interesting, but not black. And because the human had seen his black irises, he won't risk any undue suspicion falling on ~~him~~ them before it was the right time. Not everything should be left to Fate. Unnecessarily risky and, truth be told, quite moronic. And he very rarely found himself navigating these extremes. Thus, if he planned on feeding while keeping company to the human, irritating contacts will have to be suffered through, at least for a little while.

The _when_ his meal will take place and _who_ it will be was still veiled in uncertain circumstances that could not be predicted ( _by him_ , and he really did not want to possess the pre-knowledge that little psychic Cullen wielded, and to be perfectly clear, _this was not sarcasm_ , he definitely did not desire her gift for his collection. He felt it was too much like spitting at Fate’s feet by arrogantly manipulating the more _open for interpretation_ scenarios. It was not their place. For he truly believed that, when no one could beat Fate at His game, Aro did not think Fate to be overly fond of constant disturbances to the natural flow of Fated events. Who was she to decide that her interpretation was the correct one? For the right reasons? Which did not primarily serve selfish ends? That it was right for the persons involved. Or the ones who were caught in the ripple effect?).

_In the room behind the wall on his right, Bella’s alarm started ringing as it was 10:00 am. He could hear her grumpily twisting and turning within the sheets, her getting up from the bed. Yawning. Stretching. He could hear the human rummaging through her things, the soft patter of her feet on the carpeted floor, a door opening. The sound of the shower being started._

Well, he won’t stoop so low as to snatch a human from the lovely Four Seasons hotel, it was just bad manners. They had been very polite and accommodating, _professional_ , qualities he truly valued in others, even if it was food.

(Somewhere in the far back of his mind, in the abyss of his psyche he acknowledged that it was just a coping strategy, albeit a very successful one, this conditioning of humans – intelligent, fully sapient beings, which were not unlike his species in this regard. There had been true genius and wisdom beyond meagre few decades, or such emotional intelligence, which he had been privy to bear witness to because of his gift, found in some humans _(something centuries old vampires had never and would, most likely, never learn in their extended stay on this plane of reality_ ). It was a way of distancing himself from all the death he was destined to bring upon his prey (he had found that the truly brilliant ones were the hardest for him to extinguish, and if he could, he let them go, _those few lucky ones being none the wiser (usually) of their brief brush with death_ ). _And_ it was a means of protecting the conscience he still retained, despite other’s beliefs, for when he devalued the vast majority of humans to food, he could live more comfortably with his very nature and accept that this was _his_ Fate (to become a vampire, _a killer_ , a king), that he had been destined to live this life and so it was _his prey’s_ Fate to cross paths with him, and to have their lives ended _by him_.)

The shower had been turned off for the last few minutes and he became aware of the nearing of a distinct heartbeat.

Bella emerged from her room and yawned, and then she slowly blinked and started to look around the suite’s living room.

“ _Buongiorno, Isabella_ _!_ ” Aro cheerfully greeted the bleary eyed girl. He let his eyes travel from her bare feet to the crown of her wet hair. 

She had changed into white jeans and sea green batwing sweater. The colour suited her exceptionally well. _Shelookedlovely._

 _“Aah!_ ” Bella shouted and spun around.

Aro giggled.

“Aro... You almost scared me to death!” she exclaimed while pressing her left hand over her heart, no… that was not quite right… (over the right side of her chest) _or was it?_

Fortunate, that Renata was still to return from her mission. _And did not hear him_.

Then the human froze and _stared_ at him. And stared. And stared some more. _Was there something on his face? (There wasn’t, he knew there wasn’t.)_

“I hope you had a pleasant night, dear.” This seemed to shake her out of her staring fest and she quickly replied-

“Actually, I did. Surprisingly pleasant, _after I hit the bed_. The mattress is to die for. I think it has spoiled me for any bed for the next six months before I forget what it felt like.” Bella said as she crossed the room.

“Well, love, I'm happy to hear that. Aren't you glad you decided to take us up on our offer to tag along to our hotel?” Aro asked in a saccharine tone. Then he gestured to the table between them where an American Breakfast had been ordered for Bella. “Please, help yourself to anything you want. Coffee? Or are you a tea person?”

“I did not take you up on it! You practically kidnapped me from the airport!” Bella accused but nevertheless sat down on the sofa at the other side of the glass table from Aro. She proceeded to pour herself a cup of steaming coffee and snatched a bowl of freshly cut figs from the table. Then she pulled her naked feet up on the sofa and tucked her knees under her chin. 

“Semantics. You would have agreed eventually, _ah-ah-aah!_ , don't try to deny it. I just sped the process up a little.”

“ _Argh_. You are infuriating sometimes, you do know that, right?” Bella took a deep breath of the aroma of her coffee and let out a happy sigh.

“Oh, I’m aware. My brother Caius loves to remind me every chance he can get away with. However, I'm not even half as infuriating as that conceited… _pagliacco_ is himself.

“He sounds positively charming.”

Aro barked a laugh. “You say that now... His tantrums are infamous throughout the whole Castle!”

Bellas eyebrows shot upwards. “Castle? You live in a freaking castle?”

“It is just what we had started to call our family home in Volterra, and never really stopped. It became a part of our family vernacular. Think nothing of it, dear.”

“... Okay.” She quickly took in the rest of the room with her chocolate eyes. Her inspection stopped at the large windows. “The view is amazing.”

“I find myself partial to it as well.” he gave her a quick smile and took a small sip of his wine.

“Is Renata still asleep?” 

“Oh, no. Actually she's not here. I’ve taken the mantle of being your babysitter, for the time being, that is, until she comes back.”

“ _Babysitter?_ You are not my babysitter, mister. Not that I need one, _you asshole_. You are my kidnapper.” _If only the Guard could hear her. Such audacity. He did not let anyone talk to him that way. Not since-_

Aro rolled his eyes. “Don’t be dramatic, dear.”

Bella took a sip from her coffee cup. “Why did you do it?” 

“Do what, sleepyhead? You have to be more precise. ” Aro smirked as Bella's face turned a bit scarlet. A side effect of her warm drink, no doubt. 

“Kidnap me.”

“Oh, that. _You know why_. It’s much more convenient than meeting up later on. Even your stubborn logic cannot fault this. And besides, we had plenty room in this suite, as you can see, and we _really_ don't mind. ”

Aro knew he was sporting that smug expression that Caius always complained about and secretly wanted to punch every single time.

“Yeah. I'm starting to catch on.” the human coughed a little and replied in a dry and a bit raspy tone.

“Anyway. Where did your niece go?”

“Renata lost a bet and had to go fetch a car for us from the company's Seattle headquarters.”

“You guys own a company here?”

“Why yes. Do try to keep up, love. The coffee might help. ” he nodded to her steaming cup that strongly smelled of the coffee plant. Thank Fate they (vampires) found relatively untampered natural flavours appealing. He likened it to a human smelling freshly cut grass or flowers, for example, roses or apple blossoms,- they smelled divine, but were not edible. The human brain did not register them as potential food sources. 

Bella glared at him but took a long swallow from her cup, her eyes narrowed in challenge. The girl was something else. No one from his family would dare do such a thing in his presence, or to him, not since Sulpicia-

“Do I know it? Your company.” 

Aro seriously considered lying. Not many knew of his association to the company as a major shareholder. But... Bella was soon to become one of His. There was no harm in it really... 

“Hmm. I would hope so. Valerian Incorporated. I'm confident you've heard of it. It is one of the five leading companies in medical and bio-tech research in the world...the headquarters here are just around the corner, at Rainer Square, if I'm not mistaken. Renata should be back soon-”

“You guys own _Valerian Inc.!?_ ” The girl seemed truly shocked. 

“Our family does, yes. But I'm one of the main shareholders.”

Bella focussed on a point behind his right shoulder, the Ferris wheel, most likely. “What was it called... Valerian Occidental Laboratories,” she looked him in the eyes for a moment and added, “…and Technologies,” she paused for five seconds, as if recalling a long lost memory, “for Um. _Umbra?_ Yeah, Umbra Research Incorporated?”

The girl had left him momentarily speechless. Again. Everyone just called it Valerian Inc. Everywhere. As the full name was quite the mouthful. 

“…Exactly. I’m pleasantly surprised. Not many bother to learn much less remember the full name...”

The girl was muttering something under her breath but soon enough her eyes fell on him again. “V.O.L.T.U.R.I. for short. How come I've never thought about it this way before? ”

No one was supposed to think about it this way, that’s why. It was their vanity _and arrogance_ of the highest order that was at play here. They just could not help themselves. _Valerian Occidental Laboratories_ _and Technologies for Umbra Research Incorporated_. Marcus had been against it, of course, _always the level headed one_ , but Caius and Aro would not hear anything against the use of their name as an acronym for their legal business. It had been such a funtastical time in the throne room when Aro and Caius had come up with the name. One that sounded somewhat acceptable (they thought it had a nice ring to it; so did Alec and Jane, and Athenodora). And nothing like Marcus’s sarcastic suggestion of "the Vampire Over-Lord's Treacherous and Unholy Research Industries”. 

“I can't believe you own Valerian Inc. And I know the full name because I had considered applying for an internship there.”

“Oh?”

“ _Mmhm_. Ever since I was diagnosed with _Situs Inversus_ when I was four years old. The hospital asked my parents if they and I would be willing to come in from time to time to participate in a bit of a training exercise for the resident doctors there. They had to tell what was ‘wrong’”, here she used her index and middle fingers to form quotation marks, “with me. The last time I went was when I was fifteen. And there was this ridiculously smart guy from Valerian Labs. He figured me out in under a minute. Then, we got talking- … _Andyoudon’tneedtohearthis._ ” The girl seemed a bit flustered and had her eyes glued on the croissant that had appeared in her hand which she promptly bit into and started to slowly chew the bite, while determinedly not looking at him.

“ _Fascinating._ ” He had had an inkling that there was something fishy going on, judging from her reaction, when he had scared her earlier. “The condition's so rare. Are you alright? Have you any negative side effects, complications?”

“Oh no, thank God. Nothing like that. It's a completely reversed case. I was very lucky. ”

“Well. I, for one, am glad you are all right, Isabella. ”

“Thanks.” She popped a quarter of a fig in her mouth and chewed. It's been a while since he'd last seen a human eat. It was quite interesting (from a scientific perspective) how many times they chewed their food before swallowing. And the fact that they had to chew _anything_. Suddenly, he was overcome with a deeply frightening thought that he had forgotten how to do it. Vampires did not _chew_ their food (and _again_ , he was not including those sorry excuses for vampires that had unhealthy food related fetishes and liked to eat their dinner, in the most literal sense of the word. Aro suppressed a shudder). They drank it, the blood, bit off pieces of other vampires or werewolves when necessary, bit humans to feed on them or to turn them, but _chewing_?

And now he was curious. **_He’ll have to test this._** Suddenly the human food on the table had gained an interesting edge to it. **_Soon._** Perhaps-

“Anyway... What was the bet Renata lost to you?” 

“You lying liar who lies.” Darling Renata had returned. Marvellous! And she looked livid.

_How adorable!_

“Am not.” Renata was a sour loser; it was one of her lesser known traits. However, he spent so much time with her... Who was he trying to fool, he'd read her unconscious mind countless times as was par for the course. He simply knew her. In and out. The very best and the truly worst (not that there was much of the latter. Renata was a sweet and kind soul and he was blessed by Fate to call her his companion). 

“Good morning, Bella.” Renata gave the girl a sweet smile and came to sit beside him on the lounge. “And yes, he is. A liar. _I did not lose._ We drew a draw. You lost as much as I did, Uncle Aro. ” Bella’s eyes jumped from Aro to Renata and back.

“Sooo. If you had to go get the car, what did Aro lose?” 

Here Renata’s face bloomed in a breathtakingly gleeful expression, if the catching of Bella’s breath was any indication. 

“He lost the keys.” His darling sang and her eyes danced with mirth. Now the human was snickering as she took another sip of her drink.

“You are simply incorrigible, dear.” Aro fondly muttered.

“And you are riding shotgun.”

Aro took a sip from the wine glass. Renata looked alarmed for a brief moment before her expression shifted to the expected disapproval. Bella just seemed generally surprised he was drinking at 10:30 in the morning, but accepting, likely attributing it to his quirky personality.

“Isn’t it too early to start drinking, Uncle Aro?”

“You think so? I decided to indulge a little. They had one from 1903, after all.”

“Ma- ”

“- **Besides** , I’m not the one who will be driving, remember?” Aro smirked and cut her off.

Renata huffed but did not say anything more on the subject. Then she proceeded to pull a little blue rectangle box from her purse and handed it to him. “Here. Black. Just as you asked.”

“Thank you, darling. You are a lifesaver.” _The Irony_.

***

Aro could not believe his eyes. An unusual occurrence. _Of all the things he did not expect to be unpleasantly surprised by -_

“Is this _a_ _~~fu~~_ _joke_?” Aro was sure his voice had regained some of the authority that he utilised daily when dealing with vampire affairs. “Renata. Is this a joke.”

“Ma-. I’m sorry. I know what you are probably thinking, but I had nothing to do with this. They only had Bordeaux ones available.”

They had arrived at their car in the hotel’s underground parking space. Aro had had almost fully approached the dark red vehicle when he had spotted the car’s licence plate number.

“I am not talking about the bloody colour, _ragazza_.” he said in a deadly calm voice. “Explain. _Now_.”

“Ma- _Aro_. I’m truly sorry.” This time, she did sound properly apologetic, no pretence left. “ _So sorry._ It was the only one they still had on site. With Christmas being just around the corner, all the other ones had been priorly reserved and already taken.”

“ _666-MRV,_ Renata _._ ”

“ _Lo so_. I think someone from the family is responsible, though. Not the people at this branch.” Renata squeezed his wrist after making sure she was welcome to do it, and his world turned into a vortex of colour and sound at the back of his mind. It helped a tiny bit that she was actively bringing up the memory of her getting the car.

_Renata going at a human pace, her deadly heels clicking on the white marble floor, the receptionist greeting her, Good morning Miss!, clearly attracted to her, kept blushing and tumbling over their words, smiling and looking as if dazed by her, Hello… employee name tag… Alex. I’m Renata Volturi, Renata flashing an unnecessary ID, Merry Christmas Alex! I need to take a company car, Ma’am there’s only one left, the human slowly losing their besotted expression, is there a problem Alex?, no of course not, no one uses it really, what’s wrong with it then?, n-noting, it’s this year’s Maserati Quattroporte, what’s wrong with it? it’s in pristine condition Ma’am, what’s wrong with it?, what’s wrong with it?, the human reluctantly showing Renata the registry of the Seattle HQ vehicles, 785-HEA, 811-PMT, GXQ7727, 643-YBI, CMW4212, TCH1154, 167-FXL, 178-ACS, AJHF993, 878-LLY, 666-MRV, we don’t know who’s idea it was, 666-MRV, Merde!, silver fountain pen broken in half by Renata, fucking assholes, It’s okay Alex, she’s going to kill them, I’m very sorry Ms Volturi, It’s okay Alex, here’s the keys Ma’am, Thank you Alex, you’re very welcome Ms Volturi, have a lovely day Alex, Merry Christmas Ms Volturi, Renata taking the car keys, clicking of heels_

He looked in Renata’s eyes and nodded. He’ll deal with it when they got home.

Bella whistled.

“ _Oh… my God_. How many times are we going to get pulled over?”

“If Fate will have it, none. It seems that someone from our family decided to play a prank on me, or on one of my brothers.”

“It’s not that bad, Uncle-” Was this their Guard’s idea of keeping a low profile? Of all the foolish, _idiotic_ things-

“Rest assured, darling, the guilty party _or parties_ , will be found out and punished accordingly.”

“No presents under the Christmas tree for being bad, huh?” Bella made a week guess, trying to lighten the suddenly plummeted mood.

“Perhaps.” Aro gave her a small, tight smile and took Bella’s suitcase, before she could protest and his own and headed for the trunk, Renata doing the same. “Well, dears, we better hop in. No need for Carlisle to unknowingly wait longer than necessary.”

“I’m still driving.”

“Of course, darling. I wouldn’t go back on my word, surely not because of a juvenile prank like this.”

_Heads, however, are going to roll._

“What was your bet about? You never said.” Bella asked when she had settled in the middle of the back seat and had put the seatbelt on.

“The number of birds that will strike the plane’s engines. We were quite bored, you see.” Aro nonchalantly informed Bella.

“Aro said five, my guess was three.” Renata said as she slowly rolled the car out of the parking space.

“What…”

“Turns out the right answer was four.”

“ _Ohmygod_ …”

“Don’t be alarmed, Isabella, no one was harmed, except for the few unlucky swans, of course.” Aro teased and turned just in time to see Bella’s shocked face.

“You’ll have to forgive my uncle, Bella. Sometimes he just cannot help scaring people. By now, he has it down to an art.” She looked through the rear view mirror to Bella and winked.

“Oh. My. God! I can’t believe I slept through all that! You should have woken me up! _Fuck_ , I can’t believe I missed it!”

Aro met Renata’s eyes and saw they shared the same bewilderment.

“… You are… _full of surprises_ , dear. But then... all the best people are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, when I first had this idea of Aro, Renata and Bella accidentally meeting in an airport and even when I first started to write this, I never intended for it to be a Christmas story. It just sort of happened. 
> 
>   
> _Buongiorno, Isabella! (Italian)_ \- Good morning, Isabella!
> 
>  _pagliacco (Italian)_ \- clown
> 
>  _ragazza (Italian)_ \- girl
> 
>  _Lo so. (Italian)_ \- I know. 
> 
> _Merde! (French) – Fuck!_  
> 
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	6. Driving Home For Christmas: Part I

“You calling me crazy, mister?” Bella teased. She leaned forward, closer to Aro and Renata, so she was able to glimpse a ghost of a smile on his crimson lips.

“Merely that we, Renata and I, belong to the same category. For we too are full of surprises, young Isabella.”

“So, what you really mean is ‘ _We’re all mad here’._ ” Now that she was closer to them both in an enclosed space, Bella could sense their unique perfumes. Renata’s smelled like raspberry flavoured cotton candy. It was a sweet but fruity scent that made her want to bask in it for hours on end. It was very pleasant. Like relaxing in front of the fireplace with her favourite book _and_ her favourite dessert on a chilly evening. Aro’s perfume, on the other hand, was even more captivating. He smelled like Japanese honeysuckle and cloves. Utterly mind-blowing. She wanted to take big gulps of air and get high on the sweet scent, but it’d be incredibly weird. If she did that. She had enough common sense to not act on this unforeseen compulsion. But a tiny little lungful wouldn’t hurt _anybody_ really, would it-

“If you want to look at it that way… I have _absolutely_ no objections.” He declared. “Renata, do you?”

“I’ve come to the realisation and the consequent acceptance that you are stark raving mad a long time ago, Aro,” Renata answered completely automatically as she kept driving, not taking her eyes off the road; it left Bella with the impression that Renata has given much thought to the issue _way_ before this conversation and voiced it as an obvious fact of life.

“However,” traces of a wicked smirk appeared on her face as she found Bella’s eyes in the mirror, “There is not a chance that my Uncle’s crazy hasn’t rubbed off on me. And… I feel like I should warn you Bella.”

“I’m not gonna like this, am I.”

“There is not a snowball’s chance in hell that my Uncle’s crazy will not rub off on you too, if it hasn’t started already. By now, it’s only a matter of… _a few hours_ , I think.”

“Renata, you say the sweetest things. Flattery will get you _absolutely everywhere_ , darling.”

And here they went and did that thing again, the very same one they’ve done a few times before, - in the airport, before catching a taxi and seamlessly pushing and pulling Bella in the car in two seconds flat, up in their hotel room half an hour ago and a few minutes earlier in the parking area, - where they both looked to one another, grinned and appeared to silently hold a whole conversation in a matter of a couple of seconds.

“ _You two are so-_ You know what? I accept your challenge.” There’s only so much crazy she was willing to go along with. She completely ignored the ‘ _For now’_ that resonated in her mind and bore eerie resemblance to Aro’s slightly accented, velvety voice.

“There’s no challenge, dear. It has already begun.” Which was completely _not creepy_. _Nope._

“You know, you really do know how to be scary.”

“Thank you, dear.” _Not creepy, at all. However…_

“Do you offer lessons?”

“For you, dear?” Aro smirked. “I just might.”

***

“Isabella.” Aro started after they’d been driving in silence for what had felt like barely five minutes. They were (Renata) still manoeuvring through Seattle’s pre-Christmas road rage traffic, “I was wondering-”

“Why do you call me Isabella? Nobody calls me that.” Suddenly Bella came to the startling realisation that-, “How do you even _know my full name_? I never told you.” She did not find it exactly weird, but it still made her pause.

“I… ” Aro cleared his throat. Then he flipped his head back against the seat’s side and looked at Bella with his face practically upside down, as much as his seat allowed. _He looked-_ “Well, I might have, _completely by accident_ , mind you, gotten _a glimpse_ of your plane ticket, back there in that _dreadful_ airport in San Francisco. I hope you don’t mind.” He kept looking at her with his upturned inky black eyes. “Do you? Mind?” Aro gave her an innocent smile. His straight blue black ponytail had fallen over the back of his seat, just an arm’s reach away-

“Not really. I just prefer Bella. Usually.” Her right hand brushed the end of the silky ponytail.

“I sense a ‘but’ there.”

“But… _if you really want to_ , you can call me Isabella. I don’t mind.” She had proceeded to card her fingers higher and higher up the long blue hair and then down again, letting the silky, honeysuckle smelling strands fall through her fingers. They were _so soft-_

Aro gave her a brilliant smile. “I’ll keep that in mind, angel.”

Bella pulled on a strand of his hair a tad more forcefully and was rewarded with a quiet laugh.

“Are you two done flirting?” Bella had honestly forgotten, for a minute, that there was another person in the car with her and Aro. How mortifying. Her cheeks started to burn, “I wasn’t-, we weren’t-. That’s _not what happe_ -”

“Renata, _darling_. We were just talking.” Aro drawled with closed eyes.

“ _Right._ ” The _‘pull the other one’_ was heavily implied if not exactly said out loud.

“Where were we… _Oh, yes._ What are your thoughts on psychics, Isabella?” Her ministrations to his hair stilled, before starting anew a moment later.

“Psychics?” Bella laughed in surprise. “What brought this on?”

“I’ll explain in a moment, but first – what do you think about them – psychics, seers, oracles, prophets, fortune tellers… whichever you prefer.”

“You mean if I believe in them? If they can predict the future? That sort of thing?”

“ _Mhmm._ ” he slowly nodded his head.

“I think I do… believe… some people can _see_ some things… you know, things that have happened already _or_ haven’t happened yet. But I’ve never met one, or had my palms read.” Bella wrapped the ponytail three times around her palm until it reached the tie in his hair and then let the midnight blue hair fall down in loose waves before it straightened again.

“I see. Only one more question, then I’ll explain.”

“Alright.” This line of questioning was so very out of left field. Bella couldn’t possibly guess at why he was asking these things to her, but there probably was a good reason behind it. However, Bella had come to the startling and even a little disturbing awareness of the fact that Aro could ask her practically anything, and she would happily spill, just because it was him asking in that _silky_ , _accented_ voice. A grave suspicion had started to form in her mind, back there at Four Seasons, that she was developing a massive, impossible crush at supersonic speeds on this amazing, funny, _insanely hot_ (he’d looked spectacular in his black suit, but when she saw him this morning, he’d seemed so otherworldly beautiful in that white shirt and with his long dark blue hair all tied up, and his bottomless black eyes… She remembered thinking “ _No one should look this ethereal and still be considered human_ ”; he’d looked _mesmerising_ ), _older_ Italian stranger, who had _fucking kids_ , and who was acting as if they had been friends for years, instead of few hours. It was just so easy to like him. And this fucking ridiculous crush could only spell trouble for her. Bella just knew it.

“What’s your opinion on someone seeing specks of your future and telling you, or _someone else_ whatever they saw _. Anything_ they saw. About you.”

“What kind of a question is that? That’s awful. It’d be the same as my doctor spilling my medical history to my schoolmates or gossipy neighbours!” A large smile spread on his face as she expressed her righteous indignation.

“Exactly our thoughts, dear. Excellent! Now. Here comes the explanation – one of Carlisle’s adopted daughters is a self-proclaimed seer. Believes she can see the future of those around her.”

“Is she… delusional?”

“Well, I confess I have yet to meet her, so I cannot say for sure. However, all historical evidence points to her inexplicably knowing at least _some_ things.”

“What did… the girl see?”

“Her name is Alice Cullen, if you were wondering. And she had predicted, _and told everyone beforehand_ , that Demetri, a cousin of ours, who also knows Carlisle form his time in Italy, where we met, had decided to come by the Cullens’ house to catch up as he was in Boston on business at the time, a few years ago. The thing is, Demetri never warned Carlisle of his impromptu visit, and Carlisle should not have been any the wiser. _But they all knew_.”

“Huh. That _is_ strange.”

“Tell me about it. And similar things have happened on several occasions following that first event.”

“Okay. But why are you telling me this? Sounds like she really might have some powers then. _Maybe_.” This girl, Alice, sounded a bit formidable but, frankly, also annoying, or was that just the impression she had adopted from Aro? She’d never even thought about the possibility of people being able to mess with her life (or future) in this way. Anyhow, she did not like it one bit. Bella **_did not_** **_want_ _anyone_** , let alone some complete stranger **_to poke around in her future_** and spill the beans about her fate. _No, thank you_.

“As much as it pains me to admit, your assumption may very well be the correct one. And Renata and I, we’re essentially doing the same thing Demetri did and some of our shared friends have done before us. But we,” here he looked to the left where Renata was silently driving, but surely paying close attention to their occult conversation, “would really like to surprise Carlisle. And I fear, because of his… _daughter_ , we won’t be able to.”

“Okay. I’m still following, but you can stop with the suspense, Aro. I’m hooked. Just tell me already.”

“I have an idea, which might throw her _off our scent_ , so to speak. _Perhaps._ Although, it’s only a theory.”

Renata turned her head to Aro and then to Bella, doing a double take when she saw Bella braiding Aro’s hair. Bella was braiding Aro’s hair. _When did that happen? How did_ … And Aro was letting her. Alrightythen. _Everything’s_ _chill_. Nothing out of the ordinary. _Nah-ah._ Nope.

“As she does not know you-, Well _. S_ he does not exactly _know_ know Renata and me either, but she knows _of_ us. However, she does not know you, _at all_.”

“Okay.” Bella could feel a slight frown form on her face. “Go on.”

“I have a theory that, if we changed our decision to visit Carlisle and his family, but instead, switched our intent to visit, say, your father and you, Bella, she would draw a blank.”

“Ma-. _Uncle._ Aro. That’s… a brilliant idea. A little mad,” Renata threw a devilishly amused look to both of them, “I’ll give you that, but it might actually work.”

“What. What just happened. Did you just _seriously_ invite yourselves over to _Charlie’s_ for Christmas?”

“No, Bella.”

“Yes, Bella.”

“ _Ah-hah._ ” They were mental.

“It’s not for real, angel. It’s only pretend. Just until we get you home.”

“Let me get this straight. You want to _pretend_ you’re going to mine’s for Christmas instead of your friend Carlisle’s?”

“Essentially, yes, but…Not exactly. We would, for now, in all seriousness, decide to go to your place, just until we reach your house and drop you off.” Aro explained. Then he added-

“It would help solidify this decision, if you invited us to come to yours for the holidays.”

“So… You want me to play pretend to invite you to Char-, my dad’s house-”

“As honestly and sincerely as you can manage, yes. It would also help if you envisioned the event taking place.”

“You mean, meeting Charlie and what, staying for Christmas dinner?”

“Hmmm. More or less. _Yes. That should do it._ Will you?” All that was missing was him batting his eyelashes at her.

“You guys are _insane_. I think I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting anyone like you before.”

“Why thank you, Isabella.” She couldn’t help the genuine smile that had fought its way on her lips.

“Okay, okay. Fine. _Jeez._ I’ll do it… I, Isabella Marie Swan, solemnly and from the very bottom of my heart, invite you, Renata Volturi, and you, Aro Volturi, to spend the Christmas holidays at my dad’s house at 870 Sherriffs Hideaway, Forks, Washington.”

“Thank you, Bella. We, Renata and I, graciously accept your generous offer.”

“Honestly? It’s the least I could do when you’re taking me all the way to Forks in this fancy car… even if it’s been touched by the devil.”

Renata coughed.

Aro exhaled a heavy, theatrically suffering sigh.

“Nonsense, dear. We would have done it either way. Never doubt that.”

“That’s very kind of you. Thanks.”

***

“ _Oh_ , _no._ ”

This prompted Aro to open his eyes (which had fallen shut from having his hair played with by Bella and thoroughly enjoying the process) and look at Renata, who was intensively checking the rear view mirror.

“I cannot believe this.” Renata shook her head and sounded more than a little pissed off.

Bella had a pretty good hunch she knew _exactly what_ had soured Renata’s mood.

There had been this constant air of quiet joy about Renata, ever since that damned airport waiting room, now that she thought about it. At the moment, though, it had dimmed. Their car was rapidly losing speed and Bella turned to look through the back window and lo and behold, the blue lights of a police cruiser was on clear view some thirty metres behind them. Renata pulled over at the side of the road and the police car stopped about ten metre distance away from theirs.

Bella’s “ _Not stating the obvious here_ , but what are the chances the police stopped us at random and not because of the Satanist plate number?” was met with dead silence. Her new friends seemed to not even be breathing, they were so still, like statues. _Tough crowd._

Bella heard a click of a door opening and falling shut and she saw a tall police officer slowly walking to their car. He went past her window and stopped at Renata’s, who rolled the window down.

“Hello, Officer.” Bella couldn’t see Renata’s face, but there was not a trace of that exceptionally unwelcome twist of fate that had fallen over the car just a few moments ago.

“Licence and registration, please.”

“Of course, sir. Just a moment.” Renata swiftly retrieved the car’s registration from the compartment between the front seats and her driver’s licence from her wallet.

“Here you go.” She extended both documents through the half open window.

The officer took his sweet time studying them. It was getting rather chilly in the car, not that it had been very warm in here to begin with…

“This vehicle is registered to _Valerian Incorporated_ , Ms,” he read from Renata’s licence, “Volturi.” He threw a superficial glance at Bella, then to Renata but his gaze slipped past both of them and landed on Aro, who kept looking straight ahead, and if she wouldn’t have known better, he would appear completely uninterested in what was happening right beside him.

“That’s correct.” Bella could hear the perfectly sincere smile, and feel the angelic innocence Renata suddenly seemed to radiate all around her.

“Is there a problem, Officer?”

“No, Miss. You have a Merry Christmas, ladies.” He gave the car’s registration and Renata’s licence back to her and raised his voice a bit higher so that it would carry further, “You too, _Mr Volturi_.”

It was only because Aro turned his head to the officer, that Bella could now clearly see his expression, or rather the lack of any expression to be found on his face. The blank look Aro gave the poor officer was so black and empty, and _soulless_ , that for a fraction of a moment he looked appropriately demonic. Everything the officer’s jab was alluding to, and more. A second later, however, Bella had a hard job of convincing herself that what she had witnessed had actually happened, because Aro had returned to looking out the window and emitting an air of complete indifference and boredom.

Renata was quick to close the window and get back on the road.

“That went well.” Renata remarked with gloomy relief.

“ _Hmmm_ … It most certainly could have gone worse, dearest.”

“I have a request to ask of you, Uncle.” 

Aro curiously tilted his head to the right, “And what would that be?”

“I want to be there when you deal with the… _culprits_.” Renata’s voice was full of malice and desire for a just payback.

Her wish seemed to amuse Aro greatly and he instantly flipped back to his hyper positive persona. _Definitely bipolar._

“I wouldn’t dream of robbing you of such glorious entertainment. I promise to make it exceptionally satisfying, you have nothing to worry about, darling. This has just become personal, after all.” Bella had a feeling these were not empty promises but something _very painful_ and _very inevitable_ that was bound to happen to some naughty family member of theirs. Bella sure didn’t want to be any of them, when Aro and Renata finally got their hands on the fuckers. But-

“As much as I love to hear you plotting homicide, _with a witness present_ , could you turn the heat up, please? I’m freezing back here, guys.”

“I’m so sorry, Bella!” Renata was quick to turn the heat up to seventy-five degrees.

“You should have said something sooner, angel.” Did she just imagine slight traces of worry and concern in his voice? Or were they _really there_?

“I’ll be fine. As soon as I can move my fingers again.” Bella rubbed her icy hands together and tried to get them to warm faster by blowing hot breaths on them. She could even see her breath for a second before it disappeared, it was that cold. _Jesus_.

“How are you two not cold?” It was a bit odd. It couldn’t possibly be more than forty-three degrees in here. And Aro had taken off his coat upon entering the car and Renata had done the same.

“We… have a very high tolerance for cold temperatures,” was Aro’s only explanation.

_What? That’s it? Seriously?_

He turned to Bella with a small smile and an amused glint in his eyes, “Genetics.”

***

They were nearing the Hood Canal Floating Bridge, every radio station was broadcasting only Christmas songs, ‘Driving Home For Christmas’ was quietly playing in the background and it could have been considered nearly suitable for the occasion, if only they were not going at exactly the speed of ten fucking miles per hour for the past ten minutes. Fucking boats.

In theory, it was understandable that boats (and other waterborne vessels) were granted priority over cars when a floating (and retractable) bridge happened to stand in their way. The harsh reality was that, if you were not the fucking individual operating said vessel and cursing all the fucking cars that were always in their way, you were one of the unlucky hundred (like Renata, Aro and Bella) or so people in the cars whose trips were halted just because of one sorry son of a bitch in a speedboat that used the law to take selfish and utterly unfair advantage over hundreds of other people in vehicles that just wanted to cross the bay. Which meant having to wait approximately half an hour for the bridge to be opened to car traffic.

They had been lucky, sort of. The bridge had already opened when they had reached its general proximity, but there was still a line of cars that had waited for said amount of time and most likely had been presented with a clear view of the damned boat, which were, by now, most probably, cursed six ways to Sunday by all those people in attendance to the spectacular live performance of full speed ahead injustice. And this was supposed to be the twenty-first century.

But despite this temporary setback, she had always liked crossing this bridge. The view of the water and the Olympic Peninsula was spectacular. Although, Bella couldn’t remember ever having done so in winter. She _always_ visited Charlie only in summers. It made her feel a little bad, suddenly. How many Christmases had her dad spent alone or at the station, working? Logically, there was no reason for her to feel guilt. Divorces sucked for everyone involved, and children were not miraculously unaffected by the subsequent consequences, just because they were _children_. If there even was anyone who should feel guilt, it definitely shouldn’t be her.

“It’s a right shame this baby has to suffer this kind of treatment. It was meant to fly free on a highway, not slide at a snail’s pace among family vans and nondescript Ford Escorts!”

“Darling, I care not for the insentient piece of metal. It’s just a car, for Fate’s sake. It has no mind, no emotions. _No thoughts_. I, to the contrary, am susceptible to fits of murderous rage from time to time, you know.”

“Aro! How can you say such things when she can _hear you_ , the poor baby!”

“Renata. Darling. The car can hear me as much as any piece of rock can.”

“ _Aro_ , Renata’s right. You’re being mean. ‘Cause this really is a very nice car. Is it… Do _all_ branches of _Valerian Inc._ offer their employees the latest sports cars in the market for personal use, by the looks of it?” This was potentially essential information, if Bella ever toughened up and chose to pursue a more scientific career path that included joining _Valerian Inc._ somewhere later in the equation.

“I… I haven’t the foggiest.” it seemed to physically pain Aro to admit his lack of knowledge.

Renata, on the other hand, was full on giggling. “You admitting to not knowing something, Ma- Uncle? Oh, this is officially the most fun I’ve had in the past decade and a half!” Aro threw Renata a dirty look. Bella seriously doubted this could indeed be the most fun Renata had since she was, like, ten, but… what did _Bella_ know? “Bella, my Uncle’s here a bit of a walking dictionary. Knows all manner of crazy things about practically everything, except if his company buys their employees the latest Maseratis under the label of ‘travel expenses’ every year, apparently.”

“You know I care not about such trivial things as the types of cars they drive in. Why would I?”

“I saw the registry. They had eleven this year’s _Maserati Quattroportes_ purchased, for hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars each. Totalling to one point three seven five million dollars. And this is only the Seattle branch.”

_Where they for real?_

Bella couldn’t help but whistle, “You guys sure are generous with your employee perks.” _Hmm…_ Valerian Inc. _Definitely subject to serious consideration as a potential future place of employment._

“You think so? I've never given much thought to the bonus system before.”

“ _Undoubtedly._ You’re more interested in your _Gem Collection_ than you ever were in your own company.”

Aro snorted in the most regal way Bella’d ever heard a person do, and lifted his hands and started to study his perfect nails. On his right middle finger rested a ring with a large black diamond, shaped in a perfect triangle form. On his left hand though, there was an eternity ring with pink diamonds on his pinkie finger, as well as a much thicker vintage style platinum one, which was also embroidered with pink diamonds but in an intricate lace pattern. They looked distinctly feminine and Bella realised they must have belonged to his late wife. Her theory only grew in strength as her gaze fell to his ring finger where almost complete replicas, but in clear white diamonds, rested. She’d no idea how she’d not noticed them sooner, they were truly beautiful wedding bands, after all.

Evidently, his wife’s passing had not been quite as far back in the past as he’d pretended in that damned airport.

“ _Well._ I suppose, you are not _entirely_ wrong.” Aro admitted.

“I guess it's also good to know how much you _don’t_ care about your employees then…”

“Are you tempted to join _Valerian Inc._ , Bella?” Renata teased good-naturedly. 

“Actually, darling, just this morning Bella was telling me all about having considered interning for _our_ _lovely company_ a couple of years back.” Aro's eyes were full of pure happiness, as he was looking at Bella, and she was hit by the thought that there hadn’t been anyone who had looked at her with such genuine positivity, ever. Not her sort-of-friends back in Phoenix, not her teachers, not her sandbox friends in Forks, her parents being a close second, and she’d caught them at it only a few times.

It was crazy, how this last minute Christmas surprise homecoming to Forks was turning out. It has never been easy for her to make new friends, but with these two ~~strangers~~ ( _well,_ not so true anymore, was it?) unexpected companions of hers, it was so easy to be herself. She had this _feeling_ as if she could talk to them about anything _. Anything._ And **_everything_**. And she would not find herself judged by them for it.

The unexplainable emotion made Bella feel a bit out of sorts because _realistically?_ her reaction to them was in no way a rational one. However, she couldn't help the way she felt. Was this Stockholm syndrome, already setting in? Either way, she was _screwed_. 

There was a silent question in Aro’s eyes and Bella was momentarily overcome by a crystal clear understanding of what it was he was silently asking her. Bella found it to be sweetly considerate, that he wouldn’t mention her condition to Renata before asking for Bella’s consent first. 

“Yeah. I told Aro this morning that I’d considered applying there after meeting a representative of _Valerian Inc._ at a hospital in Phoenix. I’d been invited by the hospital as a challenge to the young doctors there… Basically, I have this rare medical condition. All of my internal organs are in a mirror image to a regular person’s. It’s called-”

“ _Situs inversus._ ” was Renata’s instant response. She narrowed her unique aubergine coloured eyes a little and seemed to be concentrating, or _listening_ to something. _Wh-_ “ _Oh_ , indeed it is.”

“Um… yeah.”

“ _How very intriguing!_ I’ve only ever had two hu-”

“Renata.” Aro effectively cut her off mid-word. What was she about to s-, “ _sometimes_ , my niece gets a bit carried away, but it does happen.” Aro informed her in a smooth tone. _Why-_

“Say, Bella. Do you have a driver’s licence?” Renata asked apropos of nothing. “You Americans get them quite early, definitely earlier than Europeans.”

“Uh.. Yeah. I do. Got it last November.”

“Oh, that is excellent! Do you want to drive for a bit?”

“ _What_ … _Are you for real?!_ ”

“Of course. I’ll be happy to lend you the keys for a bit.” Renata turned her head to look at Bella, for a quick moment, and smiled at her before returning to watch the road on the bridge. They were already halfway through crossing the bridge at a steady speed of forty miles per hour.

“You’re seriously offering _me_ to drive your hundred plus thousand dollar car?”

“ **Yes** , Bella. _Do you want to?_ ”

“I’ve never driven a sports car before… I… _Hell, yes!_ _Of-fucking-course_ , _I do!_ ” She couldn’t believe them. This was **_amazing_**.

“Then it is decided.” Renata chimed. “I’ll switch with you after we cross the bridge.”

“You don’t mind, do you, Aro?” Bella had to make sure. After all, he could be an unwitting victim to her questionable sports car driving skills. “I might kill us all. _Just saying_.”

“We’re very hard to kill.” _Because that was a completely normal thing to say._

“Aren’t you even a _little bit_ worried?” Actually, he just seemed to be greatly amused by the whole conversation, but she hadn’t the slightest inkling _why_.

“Not at all, angel.” Again, with that dismissive attitude. It was _strange_.

“Right. Okay then. I warned you. My conscience is clear.”

***

Bella closed the door behind her and made herself comfortable in the driver’s seat.

 _This was sooo amazing!_ Usually she was limited to Renée’s ten year old _Honda Civic_. This was a definite upgrade.

Bella fastened her seatbelt and looked to her right to Aro (who had turned and folded one of his legs under the other on the seat so he was facing her directly) and Renata, who had leaned forward and rested her elbows on both Bella’s and Aro’s seats.

“Any last words?” She couldn’t help asking. Renata shook her head. A clear ‘no’ from her.

Aro rolled his very black eyes, amused. “Drive, Isabella.”

It was all the encouragement needed for Bella to hit the road.

The car was so _easy_ to handle. It was a true pleasure being the one behind the wheel. And _that sound!_

“ _OMG!_ This is such a sweet ride!”

“I can’t believe you actually let me drive this thing!”

“I _love you_ guys! You’re the best!”

“Thank you! Thank you! _Thank you!_ ”

“…”

“…”

“… It is our pleasure, angel.” Bella was looking at the road in front of her but could still hear the smirk in his reply. She’d clamped her jaw shut and regained a healthy amount of decorum after her initial word vomit of heartfelt gratitude, but _she was just so **excited**_! Nevertheless, she had a small smile on her face, which would not go away, no matter what.

“Well. In either case, I appreciate it.”

“I’d advise not going over a hundred miles per hour, though. I think we would all rather not have a repeat of our recent brush with law enforcement.”

“ _A hundred miles per hour_ , Renata?” She had a peculiar sense of humour. At least Bella hoped it was the case and that the older woman was joking. “You do know the speed limit here is sixty, don’t you?”

“…Sixty?” She had not been joking. _Lovely_. “Why would _anyone_ drive so _slow_ on a _highway_?”

“Safety reasons, probably. Look,” Bella pointed to a conveniently placed and very visible speed limit sign on the side of the road, “there’s even a sign and everything.”

“How… disappointing.”

“Darling, might I remind you that we are not in any rush.” But Renata still looked so very unhappy.

“How about a compromise, then? I think eighty miles per hour is a perfectly acceptable speed, taking into consideration the condition of the road, the weather, temperature, traffic intensity and the car’s performance, don’t you?”

“You seriously want me to break the law? My dad’s a sheriff, Aro! Carlie’d kill me if he ever found out!”

“We won’t tell if you won’t, love.”

“You’re impossible.” And she was blushing, again. _Fantastic_.

Charlie will never find out anyway. What possible harm could it be?

“ _Fine._ ”

“YES!”

“If we get pulled over, I’m going to kill you both.”

“You can try.” Renata seemed as amused as her uncle. Bella was wondering if the rest of their family was as equally insane as this pair. She was eighty per cent convinced that _yes they were_ , and ninety per cent convinced she did not want to find out anyhow.

“You are such bad influence.”

Aro was full on beaming at her.

And Bella was going twenty miles over the speed limit. Although, the increase in speed was practically imperceptible in this car. _Sweet_.

“You _are_.”

“Perhaps.”

Aro was still looking at her, she could feel his eyes on her, studying her.

“Um… What is it that you guys do for a living? Or do you run your company full time?” She just had to divert his attention, _somehow_ , before she started blushing for the twentieth time today.

“Hmmm. No, the company is generally run by the elected Chief Officers. It’d be too time consuming to do it all by ourselves.”

“Oh.”

“What do _you_ think we do, Bella?”

“I don’t know. That’s why I’m asking. Just please, please, _please_ don’t say you’re Italian mafia.”

Bella could feel their entertainment flooding the car.

“… What made you come to such an… outrageous conclusion, Isabella?”

“Judging by what you’ve said so far? Let's see… You’re from a big Italian family, _aren’t you?_ You’re pretty chill about people wanting to kill you, and I didn’t get the impression you were exactly joking, so… I’d bet attempts on your lives have been made in the past. Hmm… You have a very successful legal business, perhaps a cover to your more shady dealings, to throw the police off your trail. Oh, and you’ve discussed murdering someone for a prank they’d pulled on you just minutes ago.”

Aro was listening with rapt attention while Renata had covered her mouth with both her hands.

“...An interesting theory. Anything to add?”

“You don’t happen to own a cat, do you?”

Renata began chortling, “Oh, Sweet Circe. Uncle doesn’t have any cats, but-”

“My daughter owns a couple of servals, yes.” _Servals? Weren’t they basically just big wild cats anyway?_

“Then it is another point in favour of my theory.” This was fun. “Besides, both of you totally rocked that sleazy look back in the airport, dressed to the nines in your impeccable black suits.”

“Good to know we at least make a striking first impression.” Aro stated in mock-offence.

“Anyway, you definitely don’t give off the vibe of being doctors. Like, _at all_. But you both knew of my condition. How come?”

“We have theoretical knowledge in medicine. Comes with owning a company which deals in medical research… _among other things_.”

“ _Ah-huh._ ”

“I can assure you that the Volturi family is _not_ a criminal organisation, angel. Just the opposite, to be perfectly honest. It’s all very tedious, I’m afraid. Mostly I manage the estate and deal with disputes. Sometimes, however, my days feel like a never-ending business meeting.”

“Then meeting your friend for Christmas should cheer you up.” Bella gave him a reassuring smile before focusing back on not driving off the road or hitting any _unsuspecting Ford Escorts_.

“Oh, I’m certain it will, but… ” Bella looked to Aro and found him looking at her with such an undecipherable expression, she couldn’t begin to guess what it possibly meant.

“But what?”

“Meeting you has been worth more than any cheer a surprise visit to Carlisle could ever bring.” Aro said with absolute sincerity. There was no doubt that he was speaking directly from his heart.

She was at a loss for words. _How could he just say things like that_? What could have made him possibly think so? She was just a completely ordinary- and deeply touched, and-

“ _Oh_ … _thank you_. For what it’s worth, I’m very glad I met you too, Aro. _Both of you_.” And she was. _Very much so._

A barely audible sound of something hitting the front windshield drew her attention to an egg sized whitish mess that had splashed on the middle of the windshield and was now spreading further up on the glass due to the speed of the vehicle.

“ _Did a fucking bird just-_ ” Bella said but could barely believe her eyes. _What were the odds?_ “- fucking _shit on us?_ ” By the sound of it, Renata was dying in the backseat.

Aro appeared to be frozen in his seat, his black eyes stunned, full of genuine, honest to God disbelief.

And Renata was still dying in the back.

Aro was the first one to recover from his shock. “This is never to leave this car, Renata, much less be recounted in the Castle, or to _anyone_. **Ever**. Not even to Heidi.”

“I-… under- stand, Ma- Aro. ” Renata had regained the ability of speech. Partially.

“Good. I’ll have your head, otherwise.”

Aro then turned to Bella with his dark, steely gaze that just _dared_ her to disagree.

“My lips are sealed. I won’t tell a soul. _Promise_.” Aro seemed to weigh her candid promise for a few seconds and had, evidently, found it sufficient as his eyes returned to burning a hole in the windshield where the _offending guano_ was still on clear view.

_Must have been quite the bird._

“… It’s only a few more miles until we reach Port Angeles. We can stop at a car wash there.”

Her new friends made no objections to Bella’s suggestion.

_Okay, then._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd half finished Chapter 7 when I regretfully remembered that I have to write Chapter 6 as well. Let's just say that this chapter was very reluctant to be written down.
> 
>   
> _Anyway._
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	7. Angel of Death

“Tell you what, darlings, you are free to go and browse the books while I find the perfect bottle to gift Carlisle for Christmas. I will meet you back here when I am done.”

They had found the first drive through car wash after driving past two self-service ones (Bella intuitively sensing they were categorically out of the question, the bright human), gotten their car back to its former pristine condition and decided to take a little pause in their journey to Forks to ‘stretch their legs’ for a bit after the two hour drive and follow the example of the masses of scurrying humans, which were milling around the streets and stores, getting the last of their Christmas shopping done.

Bella had expressed her wish to visit the bookshop they had driven past earlier while Aro, having seen the quaint liquor store near the coast, was struck by inspiration (and a credible excuse to _finally_ find a meal for himself) to gift Carlisle with a bottle of wine, for old times’ sake. After all, it was a common and _appropriate_ human custom to gift wine when visiting friends, was it not? And _Fate_ , did he know exactly how much Carlisle loved to _play human_. Even so, Aro easily recalled Carlisle indulging in raiding the Castle’s wine cellars together with him or his brothers on one hundred and fifty-nine occasions during his twenty year long stay in Volterra. It would be a most excellent gift for Carlisle, a warm reminder, of sorts, of their time well spent together, close to three centuries ago.

“Sounds good to me.” Seemed like Bella had a genuine sweet tooth for books. She’ll fall in love with their library in Volterra, he had not the slightest doubt about it.

Presently, they were standing on the pavement by their blood red car (Bella had parked in a conveniently empty space on the street right in front of the windows of ‘Port Book and News’) and discussing their plans of splitting up.

“Alright. Bella, I’ll keep you company, if you don't mind. _Uncle_ can get lost all by himself _looking for a drink_ in this cosy little town.” Even though she went along with this splendidly, Aro could see she was not comfortable with him wandering off alone by himself, looking for a meal. Sometimes she allowed her fears to override common sense _~~(or she just loved him too much and was worried about him. Constantly)~~. However, there **was** good reason she had been brought along with him._

“I shall not take longer than half an hour.”

Too quietly for the human to hear, Renata whispered, “ _Please, be careful, Master._ ”

“ _You worry too much, darling._ ” He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, and then to Bella’s warmer one (and was rewarded with a muffled squeak of surprise and a lovely tangerine scented crimson blush) and set out in the direction of the ocean and the liquor store he had seen a few minutes earlier.

The store in question was located practically by the ocean side and he reached it (at a human pace, of course) in no time at all, gliding through the herd which immediately and unconsciously parted in his way. The sun had been shining through the partly clouded sky for the last hour, since one o'clock, so he had plenty of time (not that he needed more than a single moment) to make sure venom had retracted from the immediate outer layer of his skin. (As had Renata. _Evidently_ ). It was a very old practice, he had gotten the idea from a monk in his sixty second year of his immortal life, when he was still adapting to his new existence, and had decided to ‘see the sights’ with his sis-.

**Anyway.**

It was all to do with reaching a particular state of mind when intentional mental manipulation and pure _will_ transcended to tangible changes in the physical body. When one became the master of the monster within, not the other way around. When one controlled the bloodlust, not the other way around. Existence became much more pleasurable, when a vampire became the **master** of their bloodlust and not its **_slave_**.

It did wonders to the quality of their immortal life, when one mastered complete power over the venom that infused all vampire bodies. The essence of vampirism. The poison of and the cure to Death, the _Elixir of Immortality_. For it was truly a magnificent piece of Magic and thus not limited to the most basic things such as turning humans and… _turning humans_. Fate have mercy on the unenlightened souls because that’s about all some vampires ever imagined and thus believed their venom could accomplish.

Truth be told, he’d met many, many an individual of his kind over his long existence, and the vast majority, most between the ages of two to four hundred (some more intuitive vampires within the first decades), had figured the truth out for themselves sooner or later, with more or less instruction. How not to let the venom react to and reflect direct rays of sun, for starters.

It was not that hard, not really. He and Did- **_they_** learned the basics, such as consciously changing the concentration of the venom in the outer surface of their bodies in under a year (about ninety-seven per cent reduction of venom from the skin tissue had to be achieved, meaning _no shiny disco balls all over the place_ , they looked ‘perfectly ordinary’, if a tad pale, but it posed no real side effect to the invulnerability of the body, as the venom was _right there_ , just a bit further inside, which made all the difference in terms of _not being in a committed relationship with glitter_ ).

It was practically second nature for him to _not_ sparkle in the sun or to bite humans without releasing venom or create a sort of _anti-venom_ by filtering the venom's essence, which allowed to seal flesh wounds, without the risk of the human starting the transformation, to release a natural anaesthetic in the venom, which allowed a vampire turning to be completely painless… _etcetera etcetera._

He had mastered the art to perfection in a decade. His sist- **_she_** did it in eight years. (It had taken a lot of trial and error, a lot of meditation and _countless_ humans). The basics could be learnt in a year, if one had a good teacher and the willingness to succeed. The younger ones did not know better, especially if their sires were absent, young themselves, or were, for some reason, unwilling to share the knowledge, or did not possess it in the first place. Some just did not have the patience or the temperament. _Like Felix, that good for nothin-  
_

Some thought it was impossible, only a fairy tale, told in deep shadows of a sunny day. And never really tried. _**Sloths.** The lot of them._

_Anyway._

He opened the door to the unassuming establishment and suddenly found himself gently catching an armful of a divinely smelling human (she smelled like ozone and pine tree needles in a chilly spring morning, so very alike _fresh **air**_ ) and a bottle of _1998 Chateau Margaux, Bordeaux, France_ from a sure death by concrete, in his gloved hands.

“Careful.” He chided in a pleasantly sweet voice. The human had yet to fully register what had happened, or had _almost_ happened.

“Oh, _shoot!_ I’m _so_ _very_ _sorry_ , sir! It was completely my fault.” The dark haired _Native American?_ girl looked up to him with a grateful smile on her half-scarred face, “Thank you for catch-” the human fell silent, the words and her smile dying on her lips as **_recognition_** bled into _fear_ in her eyes for a fraction of a second before she promptly extracted herself from his grasp and muttered a quiet “Sorry” and quickly headed to the parking lot beside the little wine shop.

Without her bottle. _Who did that? Leave their wine in the hands of perfect strangers._

 _“Tut-tut.”_ Aro shook his head. _Children these days._

She had almost reached the door of her light blue vehicle, feverishly fumbling with her car keys when he darted with inhuman speed (there were no other people around, _strange_ , as well as any security cameras in sight) and stepped right in between the girl and her car door.

This only seemed to frighten the human more, as she let out a strangled scream and ran the opposite direction – _to the oceanfront._

A scared, fleeing human, one whose blood smelled _sublimely_ … _Of all the things a dreadfully parched vampire had to deal with on a sunny Wednesday afternoon_ …

He picked up the keys she had dropped in her haste to get away, leisurely unlocked the door and set her freshly purchased bottle of red wine on the passenger seat. Then he put the keys in the ignition. _Perfect._

He let her get away as far as the shoreline. Before instantly appearing in front of her, resulting in her stopping in her tracks as not to collide with him, for the second time. (He was so fast, no one could dream of seeing him move with a naked, half blind human eye. It would seem as if he had materialised out of thin air.)

She looked positively _terrified_. All wide eyes and cold sweat. How very… _The Christmas Mystery_.

Aro tilted his head to one side and unnecessarily voiced, “You know what I am.”

The girl stood frozen before him. _Silent as a grave_. “Answer me.”

“Vampire. You’re a _v-vampire_.” she whispered, terrified.

“Good. Now… _tell me_. Why is it that you know about my kind? Are you spoken for? Is that way?” he was slowly gliding closer to the frightened human girl, who was by now paralysed by her fear of him.

“I. I’m -” It was clear the girl _did not_ , in fact, _catch his drift_.

“Ah. I’ve frightened you. I should apologise but…” Aro gave the girl a lazy smile. “ _You_ should not be privy to this information, young lady. _It’s supposed to be a secret,_ you know _._ But… worry not.” Aro modulated his voice to inhabit a reassuring note. “I’ll just take a quick look. It will save us both some time and… trouble.”

Aro lifted his gloved hand to his mouth and, using his razor sharp, glistening teeth to carefully hold the black glove still, freed his right hand and quickly pocketed the glove in his coat. The girl was petrified, her eyes widened in silent horror.

Usually, the prey started to experience real, consuming fear only when his teeth were already buried in their throats. This little display of perfect terror only strengthened his resolve to find answers to this minor curiosity. Such Wonderful Christmas Time He Was Having This Year. _Full of unexpected surprises._ (Note to self: _Should travel more often_. He’d missed out on a lot, it seemed.)

He slowly neared his palm to her face and saw the exact moment when she was about to let out a shrill-

“Scream and I’ll rip your throat out.” Aro kindly and matter of factly informed her.

Fortunately, that did the trick. The scream died before it could be heard by anyone. _No necessary attention drawn to them, for now._

His right palm softly enclosed the unscarred side of her face, which was still very warm despite the fact her blood had retreated deeper in her body. He could feel her pulse racing, her body trembling under his touch. _So **very** afraid. **Out of her mind** with fright. (She reminded him of that large (compared to normal feline standards) grey coated Maine coon specimen he had seen five years ago in Milan when Jane had dragged him to yet another cat exhibition. The miserable creature had been faring rather poorly and had been visibly shaking in the owner’s arms, out of its mind with fright, despite the reassuring nonsense that had spilled from the human’s mouth. Its eyes completely round-_

He was maintaining eye contact with the human _(she too had pure black coloured eyes, similar to his current shade, a true rarity to be found in this time anymore, and he saw himself reflected in her orbs, sun shining on his white skin and in his blue hair, into his similarly deep black eyes, but not lingering there, registered his slight crimson smile, his curious expression)_ , but at the same time saw her life, permanently engraved in her unconscious mind, play ‘behind’ _his_ eyes. He has had so very-awfully-unimaginably- _madly_ -long time to perfect his gift. All the boring, quotidian happenings of her life was brushed over but still scanned diligently for anything interesting or suspicious; however, this time he was paying a smidgeon closer attention to her thoughts, for he should not miss (as if that was even a possibility) a thing.

( _She was Native American, just as he’d predicted, 21 years old, an only child, recently returned to the reservation of La Push where the Quileute people lived, after finishing college, had been told the legends by her tribe’s elders, passed down to the younglings, of cold shiny **things** that would eat her people on sight, of wolves _(not the real ones, something **different** -) _that changed back into their fathers and brothers and uncles and cousins and protected their people from the **Cold Ones**. Her finding out very recently that it was All True _(well, to an extent, he supposed) _as one of the wolves claimed he had imprinted_ (such a peculiar a notion) _on her and professed his undying, forever and ever and ever-ever-lasting love to her, right before losing his temper and leaving forever and ever and ever-ever-lasting claw marks on her beautiful face._

“Emily Young.” Her heart spiked and eyes widened in surprise.

“Do you know what happened to My Darling, Emily Young?” he asked as if discussing the weather. 

“N-no.”

“No. Of course, you don’t. How could you? She was killed, you see, _bitten_ , really, by a werewolf.”

The young woman’s already sprinting heart began to race even faster. Fear was thickening the air around them and made her very clean smelling blood all the more sweeter for it.

“That’s right.” he grinned, showing off his razor sharp teeth. “It was 1903. December. Just as it is now. My sweet darling wife and her friend, her sister really, were attacked by a group of werewolves. Five against two. Not the fairest of odds… Do you agree? ” he was still looking in the girl's eyes and after a long moment she nodded. Aro began to nod along her.

“I thought you might. The wolves, not the overgrown puppies you have play in your backyard, _the real werewolves_ , the Children of the Moon, we call them… They were seeking revenge, you see.” The girl was looking in his eyes, as if hypnotised. He knew the girl will be able to recount this quaint little encounter of theirs to the smallest detail; to the very last word spoken (if she lived to tell the tale, that is; he was still undecided and _so. very._ **_hungry_** ).

“But, My Darling and her friend. They were innocent. They were not the ones to be taken revenge against.”

“Nevertheless, they managed to eliminate all of the wolves, _two against five_ , but _in the very end_ , My Darling was bitten, while saving her friend.” He was recounting the dreadful event like a congenial professor, whilst the horrifying memory he had glimpsed from Athenodora and Sulpicia both, played round and round and around in the back of his mind.

_Swirling._

“I confess I’ve never liked dogs much since.” Her breath caught in her throat. _Bella did that a lot too, quite often. But Bella wasn’t scared. She did it for a different reason altogether, didn’t she?_ “So now you see. _My dilemma_.”

He drew her in, flush against him and leaned down, tilting his head so that he could lightly press his lips to the silky skin of her delicate throat.

“…Don’t. Please. _Please_ -”

“I am tempted.” Aro drew his face up and quietly spoke in her ear, after inhaling a lungful of pine needle and ozone fragrance that permeated her refreshingly smelling blood. “To take you away from him.”

Aro exhaled a sigh.

“Just the same as My Darling had been taken from me by _those wolves_ , only a hundred years ago. Barely _**a moment** _ago.” He could hear her heart drumming heavily in her chest. The partial cloud cover was doing a poor job of keeping the sun at bay, and the beach was lit in sunlight. Any observers would think them lovers, enjoying a rare sunny afternoon this Fate forsaken place was graced with from time to time.

“What to do, what to do _… with you_.”

“ _Please._ ” It was spoken so softly and so quietly. So desperately. If he was not what he was, he wouldn’t have been able to hear her.

“I hear you, sweet girl. You and your Sam are very lucky I am not inclined on stealing you away from this world today.” For the girl had been a fount of information about _the Quileute legends of the Cold Ones, the Tribe, Vampires in Forks, white skin sparkling in sunlight, bias about Carlisle Cullen the new doctor in Forks Community Hospital, Charlie Swan spending this Christmas with his best friend Billy Black at the reservation_ (good to know), _the shifter gene, so many vampires at Forks at once, Leeches, not myths after all, the Treaty, Ephraim Black, **The Treaty** …_ Someone’s been **_very naughty_** , **_Carlisle_** _, the faces and names of every member of the shifter tribe,_ and, perhaps, the most crucial one yet – the fact she did not despise him or vampires in general, for what they were, for their very nature, she did not condemn or hate his kind on principle like so many of her people did. She feared them, was terrified of being drained dry by one of them, but hadn’t told their secret to a soul outside of her people…

She _understood_ , unbelievably so, but still true. Perhaps he should reward such open-mindedness…

“For you too are an innocent, are you not, sweet girl?” He drew back and looked in her tearful eyes. “You mean so much to him, I could see. As much as My Darling meant to me.”

“ _But..._ I am _still_ so very hungry. I haven’t had a drop of blood for a month.” Aro softly traced her delicate cheekbone, just below her left eye. “You’ll allow me to take a little from you, won’t you? I promise, I don’t need much.”

A single tear finally spilled over, for her eyes were swimming in them, and rolled down her paled cheek. Which he promptly caught and brushed away with his thumb. _So very, very afraid_.

_Intoxicating._

“Will you allow me this, dear? I promise to do you no harm. You’ll be free to go… _Momentarily_.” Honestly, the girl had only two options here. He would drink from her or he would drink from her _and_ kill her. She just had to choose right. It was that simple.

She looked to him as if staring death in the eye, which she was, in an abstract way, if he chose to look at it in this way.

 _Her Angel of Death_ , she called him in her mind (she was not the first and won’t be the last to liken him to that particular Divine Being. For he was so otherworldly beautiful to her human eyes, _and_ brought only death to her kind, _as far as she knew)_.

The girl nodded her assent, almost imperceptibly, but he _saw_ without difficulty, _heard_ without difficulty, her muted agreement.

“Thank you, dear. It won’t hurt. _Much._ ” Aro wickedly teased and made a deep incision in her left outer carotid artery with a very sharp nail (so scalpel-like and the action so swift the girl did not even comprehend he had done anything to her already) and immediately pressed his lips over the wound and allowed the warm, sweet, ozone and pine needle flavoured blood to flood his mouth and throat.

He gently pressed the trembling girl even closer to him; her hands had cramped in his coat lapels in a feeble, unconscious attempt to stop what was happening. Aro tangled his right hand in her soft hair, his left on the small of her back, _in a perfect lovers’ embrace_ , and allowed himself to take two more long blissful mouthfuls of the delicious red redredred _red **red**_ essence of life that coursed through her veins, nothing that would harm the human; even less than a donation at a blood bank would have drawn from her.

In his third and last mouthful of her uniquely flavoured blood, he sucked away any venom that may have tried to surreptitiously seep into her blood-stream and consciously released the coagulant part of the venom _and_ the anaesthetic (vampire venom was not exactly a pleasant substance for humans, even in its altered form) after swallowing the toxic one _(to her)_ , which would initiate the change, and licked the wound on her neck shut. It sealed over instantly and flawlessly, right before his eyes. _Excellent work_.

Mouth still full with venom in its alternate state, he regarded her terrified face and made a split second decision; he swiftly and precisely scratched her face over the ugly claw marks (the girl let out an unbidden scream of pain that he quickly smothered with his right palm), completely reopening the healed scars and momentarily licked the bleeding wounds on her face closed shut. 

The girl whimpered and he cradled her head to his chest, “ _Hush_ , child.”

After a short moment, all that was left on her neck and on the right side of her face in place of the damaged flesh was a lighter toned, perfectly smooth skin, which needed only a bit of sun for the difference to disappear completely. _Very excellent work._

Aro took her head in his hands and lightly brushed the black hair away from her face.

“There.” The girl was visibly shaking; the shock finally setting in. “ _As good as new._ ”

He leaned in and with a smile on his lips, whispered in her ear, “You tasted _wonderful,_ dear.”

Finally, he released her and took three steps back from the frozen human, “Perhaps Fate will have us meet again. Run along now. _Emily Young_.”

It was as if a switch had been flipped, because the human finally let the adrenaline take over and bolted from the sandy beach to the parking lot, where her car had been beckoning her all this time. Hopefully, she won’t be so stupid as to attempt to drive her vehicle in her current state. It would be such an unfortunate turn of events, her driving off a cliff or into a ditch somewhere ( _or rather an exceptionally delicious meal wasted for no good reason,_ _Aro_ ).

Aro slipped his hand in his coat pocket and withdrew Renata’s generously obtained box of deep black contacts from the HQ, specifically designed to withhold the damaging effects of venom for up to two weeks. Their company did research not only for humans _(that would be such an **absurd waste** of resources)_; _Valerian Inc._ was in excellent position to study vampire biology as well. Another reason Carlisle’s continued silence continued to continuously ~~bother~~ perplex him. Because, at the end of the night _, Carlisle was_ _a friend_. Sometimes vampires went even centuries without hearing from each other while not experiencing a loosening of their established bonds to each other in the slightest. _~~So what had happened?~~_ )

He carefully inserted one pair of lenses and blinked. He hated having these things in his eyes. They were the best there was, but still reminded of their presence for a few minutes, before his subconscious took over and made him forget all about them. (A timer, however, was always ticking in a separate train of thought at the back of his mind, counting down minutes, so that he did not forget to replace them, when time eventually run short).

He felt so much better already.

 _Honesty time!_ \- really old vampires, like him, did not need much blood. A few sips from a human once every two weeks would do. That, of course, did not mean that they (vampires, even five (give or take a few) millennia year old ones, like him) did not _indulge_ , regularly. Sometimes it was the opposite. He could grow so ~~depressed~~ bored and tired of eating _the same thing all over and over again and again and again…_ , he did it only when hunger forced his ‘fangs’. Like now. But she was a truly delicious one. He’d gotten lucky. Or was it Fate, playing favourites again?

A ping sounded from his blackberry phone and he retrieved it to open a new message… from Renata.

_We’re at the hospital. Olympic Medical Center. Please don’t kill me. Renata._

Aro closed his eyes and slowly counted to one hundred and seventy-four in his mind. Slipped the phone back in his pocket and set out for the liquor store. For future reference: _Refrain from jinxing himself so often._

***

Aro walked through the automatic sliding glass doors of the hospital in hurried steps. He quickly observed the lobby and all of the thirty-two waiting humans and hurrying nurses, as well as the receptionist behind the desk a little further down the hall, right before the stairs, lifts and a **Very Important Looking Door** that led to the emergency rooms. It was exactly the same as from Patrick’s memories (he had taken the liberty of surreptitiously gleaning the full map of the city from the wine shop owner’s memories and now knew the locations of all the important buildings and places in this petite town), except for a huge, ugly decorated fake Christmas tree with neon blue lights that was placed in the left corner from the main entrance he’d just stepped through.

Aro quickly approached the receptionist. She looked slightly overworked with the evident increase of injured humans, a very common occurrence during the Christmas holiday season, statistically speaking.

She lifted her eyes to him but froze as her brain seemed to short circuit for a beat. They were such pitiful creatures. Humans. Pretty face, sweet smile and nice shoes and they all lost their modicum of marbles.

“Merry Christmas… Cynthia.”

“ _Hey_ …Uh.. H-hello. Sir.” A smidgeon of professionalism regained. Fantastic. “What can I do for you Mr…?” The receptionist leaned forward and twirled a lock of her bleached blond hair around her finger.

Aro gave her a small, indulging, but, at the same time, nervous smile.

“Swan. I just got the call that my niece, Isabella Swan, has been admitted here. I came as soon as I heard.”

“Let me check… Swan…Sw… Oh, yes. I remember now, the girl was brought in around twenty minutes ago, unconscious, with her arm broken.” Broken arm. _A broken arm?_

“ _A broken arm?_ ” he did not even need to fake his disbelief.

“And a possible concussion,” _he’s going to kill Renata._ He was gone for thirty minutes. How _hard_ could it possibly be to guard one tiny little human for _thirty minutes?_ After all, she did it all the time to him. _What had happened?_

“What happened?” He couldn’t believe ‘ _the curse of hastened death_ ’ had already activated, this early. The girl had not even figured them out, not properly. Likely she just had a healthy amount of questions and suspicions about them. Unbelievable. _It hasn’t even been a full day yet, for Fate’s sake._

“She fell down the stairs from the second floor of a bookshop. Such an awful accident. Right before Christmas too.”

“ _¡Dios Santo!_ ” he even crossed himself. “Can I see her?”

“Of course, if you’re family.” She seemed uncertain, and _he_ was running out of patience. _Didn’t he say already? Suddenly he was dearly reminded of the lovely Ms Camilli’s high professionalism. That girl was a gem. Unlike-_

“I’m her uncle.” He repeated slower this time, which prompted a blush to rise on her face.

“ _Oh! Right… of course_. Um, right through those doors, sir. She should be in one of the ERs, Mr Sw-“

“Thank you, Cynthia.”

***

He found Bella and Renata soon after. Bella’s forearm had already been set and stitches were being carefully placed over bruised and broken skin by an orthopaedic doctor in a white lab coat. Behind the doctor on the opposite wall was a led screen on which an x-ray of a left forearm with a cleanly broken ulna was displayed for all to see.

Bella was half-sitting, half-resting on the hospital bed with her eyes closed and breathing evenly through the whole procedure, _although_ … an IV drip had been put in her other arm and- _was that **morphine** he was smelling in her blood_?

Aro quietly sat beside Renata (the doctor throwing him a quick glance before refocusing on finishing the stitches) and carefully took Bella’s warm, uninjured hand with his own, colder one. This prompted Bella to open her eyes and show fully blown pupils. Oh, dear.

“Aro!” Bella’s face split into a sunny smile, “You’re here! You made it!” she giggled.

“I did, my dear.” He gently squeezed her hand. “I even brought wine.” He nodded to Carlisle’s Christmas present of a _1998 Chateau Margaux, Bordeaux, France_ that he’d placed in the empty seat beside him.

“How did this happen?” he asked Renata, but Bella answered before Renata could manage to utter a word-

“St’mbl’d on books and flew down the stairs! ‘t was _fan-fucking-tassstic!_ You should try it, Aro! No, wait, _we can try it together!_ ”

“I already know how to fly, angel.” The girl snorted, Renata stilled and the doctor drew her eyes from her work on Bella’s arm to him and slightly lifted an amused eyebrow. He could almost hear the _“Do you, now?”_

“’Course you do. You’re purrrr’fffect.” The girl slurred. “You an’ your stupid blue hair,” _how could she tell his hair was blue? humans usually couldn’t tell the difference ,_ “and your fuckin’ gorgeous eyes…” The doctor’s eyebrows kept climbing higher and higher, as did her amusement. “… And your stupid… _amazing_ … purr’fume.” the human sniffled. “And your perfect ass, and-” Aro covered her mouth with his palm.

“Isabella. We get the picture.” He gently smiled at her. As amusing her unfiltered speech was and as pleasant it was to finally get a glimpse of what the human thought about ~~him~~ his appearance, he had a feeling she will be beyond mortified once the drugs finally wore off.

“ _Aro._ _It happened so fast_ , I turned away for _one second_ , and Bella had already fallen all the way down… ” Renata looked so very guilty _and embarrassed_. As she should. She’ll never live this down, once the Guard hears about this, “and then she just _fainted_.”

“Blood makes me sq- sque- _squeamish_.” _Say what now? Squeamish? **Squeamish**?_ From _blood? **Blood**?! _He wasn’t sure what his face was doing but it must have looked exceptionally funny.

“Did… _I break…_ your _brain_ , Aro?” the girl laughed.

“Oh, shush, dear. Of course, you _did not_. I just. Did not know that about you. You continue to surprise me, is all.”

“It’s em- embarrrr-assing.” Bella began to sniffle again; the doctor started on the last stitch. “I’m such a- a k-kl-klutz.” And big crocodile tears started to stream down her cheeks.

“Don’t cry, angel. It was no fault of yours.” He brushed away the tears from her face. _He was doing this a lot recently. What has his life become. Caius would be rolling on the floor and making a dashing imitation of a laughing hyena …_ “Just a tiny accident. Could have happened to anybody.”

“ _Don’t lie,”_ her voice broke on the word 'lie', _“_ It’s the fif- _fifth_ time I’ve had an an arm brok-en... and _God_ knows which ‘cussion.”

“All done. And you don’t have a concussion, sweetheart. We checked.” The doctor started to clear away the medical instruments, “It’s just your arm that’s busted, this time.”

“I’m s-so sorry. I didn’t mean-”

“Bella. It’s alright. Nobody’s blaming you. It was an accident.”

“This happen often?” The doctor asked as she opened one of the cabinets and extracted a white box after perusing the labels of at least ten of them.

“Um. _Yeah._ More or less. Once… I fell out of the second floor window of my bedroom. This is not. Not so bad, in comparison…”

“ _Dio Cristo, Bella._ ” It seemed Renata had slightly underestimated the challenge that was keeping this highly accident prone human unharmed.

“I’m sorry for being so much trouble,” the human looked to Renata and to him with sad, red eyes. “You’re probably regretting taking me al-along now.” Bella exhaled a heavy, miserable breath and looked away from them, up to the ceiling.

“Nonsense, angel. It’s just the morphine talking. You’re no trouble at all.”

The doctor turned her gaze to Renata and Aro, “It was a clean break, however, the skin was still broken from the fall.” She looked to the upset human then back to them and added in a serious voice. “She was very lucky.”

The doctor turned her attention back to Bella.

“Now we just need to get your arm in a splint, sweetheart, and you’ll be free to go.”

***

Thirty minutes later found Bella discharged and safely buckled in the back seat behind Renata, with Aro sitting next to the sleepy girl on her right and holding her non-broken hand in his. _Complete silence._ He could get used to this.

Aro caught Renata’s eyes with a meaningful look before she started the car.

Their charade had come to an end, at long last. No more pretending. It felt liberating, even if he’d quite enjoyed the play, while it had lasted, but…

It was time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not a doctor or anyone with a medical background so some things may have been portrayed incorrectly in this chapter. However, I don't think I messed up anything huge here. This is just a warning. 
> 
>   
> _¡Dios Santo! (Spanish)_ – Dear God!
> 
>  _Dio Cristo, Bella. (Italian)_ – Jesus Christ, Bella.
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	8. Lake Crescent

They had barely left the City of Port Angeles behind when already the woods had emerged on both sides of the highway, dark and ominous. … _Ominous._ How laughable. As if there could be anything more sinister in there than his kind, _than **him**_. The Children of the Moon, perhaps, save for the fact that it was still daylight and a waxing moon would be seen in the day sky, if not for the rapidly thickening snow clouds above them. Objectively speaking, if this indeed was the usual cloud cover level in the Olympic Peninsula ( _and it was_ , according to Patrick’s _and_ Miss Young’s memories), this could very well be a perfect place for vampires (without the skill to not sparkle in sunlight) to settle down.

He’d consulted Demetri before setting out to find Carlisle, as Aro had known his old friend resided somewhere in the United States, but not his exact whereabouts. As Demetri had had the pleasure of meeting the Cullens in Boston in 1985 and tune in to all of their mental footprints (it would be interesting to find out if Bella was immune to his gift as well. So curious. Even if Isabella did not possess any major gift ( _not likely!_ ) when turned, the reaction of his gifted guard to the girl would be _so worth it_. She would make them go crazy, just as the lovely Miss Camilli did, **constantly** , only in a different way. He was so excited. _He could not wait!_ First, however, it will be _so very fascinating_ to find out if that telepathic boy could hear a thing from her ( _Aro thought **not**_ ), or if the Empath was able to perceive her emotions. But most of all, whether his little scheme of eluding the seer by kindly informing Bella of the existence of annoying future seeing girls who cannot keep their blabbing mouths shut would bear any fruit.)

Oh yes, Demetri could easily tell him that each and every one of the Cullens was currently located in Washington State, Olympic Peninsula, Forks. Aro had seen it perfectly clearly in Demetri’s mind. However, Demetri had not been able to narrow it down further and find out their home address as the Cullens had been scattered around Forks when Demetri had taken a look (shortly before Renata and Aro had parted from the Guard in Los Angeles).

And if the Cullens were still keeping to the same pattern (considering all it took to confirm that Carlisle was indeed a doctor at Forks Community Hospital was a quick visit to the hospital’s homepage, and which was now reconfirmed by Miss Young), Carlisle’s ‘children’ should be enlisted as _students in Forks High School_ , as it was the only educational institution in the ~~village~~ small town. Aro was counting on them staying there for Christmas, and not visiting friends themselves (the Denali coven, for one).

And now, thanks to the paranoid shifters and Miss Young, he knew that Carlisle’s home was located at the end of David Mansfield Road near Bogachiel River.

Anyway, Demetri had promised to frequently check in on the Cullens’ location in the next few days and inform Aro and Renata, on the off chance they left the peninsula. As there had been no update from Demetri, he could only deduce that Carlisle’s lovely family were still staying put.

It was nine minutes past three o’clock in the afternoon, which meant only one more hour of daylight.

_And how curious he should meet Bella on winter’s solstice. On one of the two most powerful days of the year. This could be nothing but Fate’s doing. There were too many coincidences for it to not be._

“I can’t let Charlie see me like this.” Bella said in a quiet and despondent voice.

Aro could empathise with her - it was likely not because of the broken arm she was so dismayed. Sounded like Bella being a regular guest to the ER should be old news to her parents, rather he supposed Bella was talking about the fact that the morphine she had been given at the hospital was still in her system and her reaction to it was a little more pronounced than an average human’s. Simply put, she looked and sounded (occasionally, much like tide and ebb) _high_. He could understand that her father, being the Chief of police would not be thrilled with his daughter turning up on his doorstep unannounced and under the influence, even if the reason behind it was more than valid.

“And you won’t have to, angel.”

Bella looked at him then, with her slightly red rimmed eyes, her pupils still fully blown.

“What do you mean, Aro?”

“Renata and I, we do not know if Carlisle will have a spare room for us to stay in. I believe he should, but I haven’t the faintest, to be honest.” Bella was listening to him, but it seemed she was incapable to muster up the usual amused sentiment when he started to voice his less than believable explanations. That, however, did not discourage him in the slightest-

“So, I thought it would be prudent to ask around for any available lodgings near here, considering Forks is not so far away.”

“Okay. I’ll bite. Who did you ask? What did you find out?” But she was still playing along. _How lovely!_ Truly. The girl had such spark in her soul, even now.

“Yes, _Uncle_ , which unfortunate soul did you _collect_ the information from?” Renata too appeared to appreciate Bella trying despite the less than stellar turn of events.

“Why, _Patrick_ , of course.” he smirked.

“Riiight. And who’s Patrick?”

“The polite gentleman who sold me Carlisle’s wine bottle, of course.”

“He was very helpful in this regard. Knew of the best lodge houses in the vicinity of Port Angeles. And _as it happens_ , he’d recently spoken with the owners, friends of his, of a very nice and comfortable two storey, three bedroom lodge in Crescent, by Lake Crescent, who’d complained that the family that had booked the house for Christmas, had changed their minds in the last minute. _And won’t be coming._ ”

“Oh, that’s wonderful, Aro. I had feared we would have make do with an inn somewhere, if the Cullens chose to not offer us to stay with them. This will be so much more relaxing! A proper Christmas holiday! I still can’t believe it! This is officially the best Christmas ever!” Sweet darling Renata was not putting much effort into pretending anymore, was she. “Have you called them already?”

“In fact, I have. The Sinclairs were very surprised by my call. But also very glad. I informed them that we will arrive tomorrow, or even today, and they assured me that everything in the house is in order as they had expected the family to arrive tomorrow at noon. We should find the keys to the house in a pagoda bird feeder to the left from the main entrance.”

Aro turned from Renata to Bella, who was watching him with tired eyes.

“See, Isabella? We will go to Forks tomorrow, after you’ve gotten a good night’s rest.”

“Why are you doing all this?”

“First of all, we ourselves need a place to stay at. Even if Carlisle has the space available for us, it would be _terribly rude_ of us to expect him to accommodate Renata and me, when he hopefully does not know we are coming. This is the best possible outcome for us. Second, I believe that we, Renata and I, would feel more comfortable away from Carlisle’s many children, at least for a few hours at a time. ”

“ _È proprio vero_.”

“Third, we are doing this because you are our friend, dear. And you got hurt while under our watch. For that, I apologise.”

“Aro’s right. _I am truly sorry_ , Bella. This shouldn’t have happened.”

“It was not your fault, Renata. I was just... being my ordinary clumsy self.”

“Even so.”

“Well, angel? Will you stay with us?”

“Do I even have a choice? You’ve totally kidnapped me already,” she let out a small laugh. “And now it would be even harder to escape.” Bella lifted her splinted arm an inch and winced.

“You could not have escape from us even if you had tried, before. _Do not_ beat yourself up about it.” he grinned.

“Right. Comments like this is why I keep getting this odd feeling that you are not actually lying. Which is disturbing. As fuck.”

“And you are completely right.”

“See? Just like that.”

“I cannot help it.” Aro unapologetically confessed with a dramatic flair.

“Aro _lives_ for scaring people. Most of the time he’s not even aware he’s doing it.”

“Like that police officer today?”

“Oh, no. That was completely intentional.” Aro huffed a laugh, “the lad was practically begging for it.”

“Aro, where should I-”

“Turn right after approximately one point seven kilometres. There will be the sign of _Olympic National Park East Beach Road_.” He saw Bella looking out the windows, but there wasn’t anything except for forest massifs to be seen. “About four point three kilometres in, take the left fork to Spruce Railroad Trail. The lodge house is at the end of the road.”

“ _Ma certo, Padrone._ ”

“How do you _know_ all this?” It seemed Bella was still a little confused after her hospital visit.

“Patrick was very helpful.”

The car fell into silence _(relative silence, the car itself was very loud)_.

Snow had started to slowly fall from the enormous clouds in feather sized snowflake clusters. It was a very peaceful sight.

He was still holding Bella’s silent palm, slowly and almost absentmindedly tracing the back of her smaller hand (Aro could not tell when he had last held someone’s hand for this long. There was no need to see into the minds of prey or fellow vampires for this long. He got everything he desired in seconds. The _last time_ that he was one hundred per cent certain of was when Sulpicia had been brought back to Volterra ( _surely the last time could not have been over a hundred years ago?_ ) and he had not let go of her for the entirety of the excruciating thirty-three hours before the poison stole the last of her life force _and His Darling died in his arms_ -

“Are you okay?” Bella asked with concern, which prompted Renata to immediately shift her sharp gaze to him. He must have allowed the memory to reflect on his face, and yes, his eyes had indeed flooded with venom, which he hastily blinked away.

“I am fine, angel. Merely haven’t seen snow falling like this for a long time.” he gently squeezed her hand and mustered up a small smile, but could clearly see none of his darlings believed him.

He felt Renata take a sharp right turn.

“How is your arm Bella?”

“…It doesn’t bother me. Anymore. _Yet_. The doctor said the drugs will last for four to six hours, when she gave them to me.”

“Good. You should not be suffering pain needlessly.” His Darling had suffered immense pain from the bite, as the poison slowly spread through her body. He’d never felt anything like it-

“Um, that’s why she gave me the pills, remember? I’m covered for the next two weeks. You don’t need to worry about this, Aro. I’ll be fine.”

“Oh, you most definitely will be.” He’ll make sure of it.

“ _Right_ … It’s really very pretty outside. The snow, the hills… the dark woods. I can’t really remember ever seeing snow like this.”

“Have you never been here in winter?”

“Ah. No. I’ve only visited in summers. I live with my mother in Arizona. …Lived.” The last word was said much more quietly. The human had piqued his interest.

“You are then moving to Forks permanently?”

“Yes I am.” She nodded a bit stubbornly.

“May I ask why?” It was _so_ _strange_ to wheedle information out of someone the hard way, by asking. He was not complaining. It was refreshing. To have to _work for it_.

“Err, yeah, sure. My mom... she remarried a minor volleyball league player and decided she wanted to follow him on tours around the country.” Bella let out a wistful sigh, “I’m really happy for her but I felt like I was in the way of her new life, so… Here I am.”

“Here you are.” While he couldn’t comprehend ever making his children feel like this or putting them in such a position, at least she had somewhere to go. “And I’m very glad, Bella.”

“Otherwise, we’d most likely have never met?” She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, smirking.

“You never know, angel. Fate works in mysterious ways.” Perhaps she would have visited Volterra, _and gotten eaten by one of the Guard,_ if Aro had not been the first to single her out from the crowd… A very disturbing thought. He did not want to envision a reality in which someone from his coven would have simply sucked the life out of his angel with him being a few feet away and none the wiser.

“You know, it was a flimsy decision on my part, to go now. At Christmas. Charlie’s expecting me only in the middle of next month.” And was it not _yet another coincidence_ that she had changed her mind, as had Aro about not returning home this soon?

“Bella? _Uncle_?” Sweet darling Renata was never going to let this go, was she? _Fate forbid she let it slip in Volterra_. “We’re here.”

“Excellent.”

They had stopped before the cosy little (compared to the Castle’s dimensions) lodge house. It was just as he’d seen in Patrick’s memories. A two storey log cabin that could comfortably house a family of six, right on the shore of Lake Crescent; said lake could even be seen from the car, right behind the building.

Renata killed the engine and they all stepped out of the car. The ground was covered in a thin blanket of soft snow as were the spruce trees and the tile roof of the cabin, although it kept snowing steadily, meaning the snow cover would only grow with time. The temperature had dropped slightly below zero degrees, so it was likely the snow would hold for some while longer.

It was remarkably peaceful here. Even if the woods were full of little sounds made by birds and other animals, even despite the sound of the snow falling or the far away disturbances humans made in their abodes. He could count thirty-nine human heartbeats in the five kilometre radius, his mind sketching their exact whereabouts in relation to him, with eight hundred metres being the distance to the closest one of those heartbeats.

They were essentially alone.

***

Renata, Bella and Aro entered the lodge through the front glass door after Aro had retrieved the house keys from the pink stained glass pagoda bird feeder. They moved through the foyer and soon descended a few steps into a high vaulted living room with wood beams and floor to ceiling glass wall, which presented a clear view of the lake and the dark green hills in the distance.

From what he had seen in Patrick’s mind, the house had a rustic kitchen, a wine cellar, a utility room, a bathroom, two bedrooms with en-suites on the ground floor and one larger one that occupied the entire upper floor and was connected to the living room, only symbolically divided by an ornate railing, thus making the bedroom even more spacious. And lighter. Beside the skylights, the glass façade facing the lake provided additional natural lighting through the living room.

The area of the living room was about fifty square metres in size, a low square table was placed in the middle of the room, surrounded by two white sofas with black cushions and two black armchairs with white ones. A chandelier was hanging four and a half metres from the ground, directly above the table and the left wall was covered in books. A fireplace, already filled with logs, was set on the right side of the room, accompanied with a pair of dark armchairs.

“This is such a lovely lodge! You definitely wouldn’t find anything like this one in Forks.” Bella said as she took off her black alpinist jacket and placed it over her arm. He had seen as much from Miss Young’s memories and had come to the same conclusion, which had made him inquire about this house by the lake to the wine shop owner in a heartbeat's time.

He took Bella by her hand and pulled her to the closest sofa. Renata perched on the armchair behind him, swinging her legs over the armrest and throwing her head over the other one. Her long wavy hair brushed the wood flooring. _It was a true joy seeing her bask in the unexpected Christmas holiday cheer._

This sudden slight shift seemed to herald to the human that there was something not quite right with the situation.

“What... What’s going on?”

“I must confess something to you Bella. I fear Renata and I have not been entirely honest with you.” The human tensed a little and threw a speculative look to both of them. Then her eyes widened comically and she asked in a tiny, desperate voice-

“You really _are_ serial killers, aren’t you? I knew it. It all makes sense now. _Assassini seriali?_ At the airport? I’m not a complete idiot, you know.” Her pronunciation was almost spot on.

“You will pick up Italian in no time, _bella Isabella_! I’m certain of it!” It was delightful to have the human comfortable enough with them to play pretend in response to his potentially daunting words. She had caught on to their particular brand of humour _in no time at all_.

“This is bad. Very bad. …And I told you my home address. Poor Charlie, he’s going to get murdered in his own kitchen…” She shook her head in faux despair.

“Fret not, angel. We don’t have any ill intentions. Your home address is safe with us.” And his darling Renata coughed. Loudly. Which was very reassuring, he could imagine, to Bella and most likely did nothing to ease her guarded anxiety.

“ _Bella_ … Bella.” Renata took two deep breaths before _trying to say_ , “We are… not… serial _… killers!_ ” And Renata’s speech had yet again become half-impaired.

“Renata. Darling. That sounded _so_ _counterfeit_! What are you, _twelve_? _I can’t even_.” Aro shook his head in dramatic disappointment.

“Forgive... me, Mas-”

“ _Ah-ah-ah._ You have lost your chance.” Aro fully turned around to face Bella. “Isabella. We are not serial killers. Well. _At least_ … not in the sense that you mean.” He amended. He could see her eyes widening a bit, in genuine surprise, this time; her heart starting to beat a little faster.

“Okay. We can stop now. This is starting to get really creepy. …You are not actually a couple of serial killers looking for your next hit, are you? Please. Pretty please. With a cherry on top.”

Renata had started to shake because she was laughing so hard. Aro was giggling and Bella looked like she did not know _what to think._

Let’s be honest, even he could admit they were acting like complete lunatics.

“This is _soooo not funny_ , you guys.”

“Trust me, dear. You and your father have nothing to fear from us.” He reached for her uninjured hand and clasped it in his chilly white ones and reassuringly squeezed it. “All we want to do here is visit my friend Carlisle. And we are very grateful you are willing to help us.”

Aro could see that his ‘perfume’ was making it hard for Bella to focus on anything else but him and his words. He was still holding her hand and could fell her calming down, even if she was as hidden from his gift as ever before. His angel was such a curious human. Usually, humans found the cold hands of vampires unsettling. _Not Bella._ Obviously.

He could see in her eyes when she finally made herself believe that he was telling the truth.

“You know what… Sometimes, the words coming out of your mouths sounded like total bullshit, but, I figured you were just exceptionally good at making the truth sound bizarre. That it was just one more way of entertainment for you.”

“But you have a _fucking awful_ sense of humour sometimes.” She accused but smiled a little, either way, and because she was looking straight at Aro, caught the micro expression of a wince he'd failed to smooth out in time.

“What? _You don’t think so?_ Who laughs about- ”

“Bella, that’s not it at all. You’re completely right. Our humour may seem a bit morbid at times. But,” Renata had lost most of the hysterical edge to her voice, but still seemed a little amused, up until she grinned evilly at him and looked at Bella with glee in her eyes, “ _Uncle_ despises cursing. _Despises._ With a burning passion.”

“ _For real?_ ” Bella turned to him, thoroughly amused.

“I’ve only heard him swear three times in all the years I’ve known him. The first time was-”

“Renata-”

“ _Really? I can't believe-._ What was it-”

“Renata. Don’t you _dare_ tell her-”

“I’d love to tell you, Bella, but it seems my head is on the line here.” Aro snorted.

It appeared as if tension had finally left Bella. 

“Then what is it that you've kept from me?” Bella asked, her earlier alarm disregarded.

“Let me ask you this – have you noticed anything… strange about us? Something that you could not explain however hard you tried?”

“Besides how you are uncommonly pale, unnaturally... _nice-looking_ , have freaky eyes and seriously sharp looking teeth and your skin is as cold as a corpse’s? Nope, nothing comes to mind.”

Bella nonchalantly started looking around the room, but Aro could trace a ghost of a smile on her lips. He couldn’t help but chuckle. Bella was still looking around the room, pretending to ignore ~~him~~ them.

“We are vampires.”

That got a reaction.

Bella froze and a second later her full attention was back on ~~him~~ them.

“ _Vampires?_ You’re shitting me, right?” She laughed. Another crude expression. _Fate help him._ Nonetheless, she appeared to be observing ~~him~~ them very vigilantly, her laughter eventually dying down as none of them were joining in, trying to gauge the situation in the wake of such an outlandish statement. “Vampires aren’t real.”

“Oh, but we are, angel.” He gave her one of his shark smiles, his razor sharp teeth on clear view to the girl sitting right in front of him. This display had her leaning back a little. But not nearly as much as she should have. _Was there something wrong with her?_

“Okaaay, I admit the teeth are a bit unsettling, but it doesn’t mean-”

Renata slipped her contacts out of her eyes, which were now scarlet in colour, luminescent in the twilight that had fallen over their surroundings due to the heavy snow clouds hiding the setting sun and giving way to sweet darkness. Her red eyes could not be mistaken for anything but _exactly_ what they _were_ , and Renata blinked once, before focusing on Bella.

The human’s breath caught in her throat. Surprise. Wonder. Admiration. Unease. Apprehension. _Fear._

“Angel, angel, angel. Look at me.” Her panicked eyes focused on him. “You are completely safe with us. We won’t hurt you. There is nothing to be afraid of.” It was not something he had to do often, or barely ever – reassure humans of their ‘good’ intentions towards them. “Nothing at all.”

Her heart, which was trying to leap out of her chest, appeared to calm down the longer she listened to his voice. Could only mean that the girl _really liked him_. The feeling was… _nice_ , he didn’t want Bella to fear ~~him~~ them, not truly. A little scared? Completely acceptable. Terrified? Not so much.

“Why… Um.” There were tears gathering in her eyes. He truly believed that the drugs in her system were helping the situation along but they were still one of the reasons for her swiftly fluctuating emotional responses. “What. What do you want with me? Why am I here?”

Then more hesitantly-

“Is Carlisle even real?”

“Carlisle’s very real, angel. As is everything we have told you, up until now. Everyone’s real, only… vampire. We did not lie about anything else. Well, except for our ages.”

“Then why…”

“You are a very curious human, Isabella Swan.”

“…I’m really not. I’m perfectly ordin-” and he could see that she truly believed her words.

“Oh, _but you are_ , angel.” he slowly reached for her hand that had slipped from his in her brief bout of panic, and was pleased to note she did not so much as twitch.

“You see, some vampires have exceptional gifts. Powerful, unique abilities that make them more dangerous but essentially are there to help us throughout our existence. ”

The human was listening, eyes wide and jumping back and forth between him and Renata.

“ _Okay_ …”

“Renata and I, we possess such gifts.”

“ _Okay..?_ ”

“There was a reason why no one was sitting near us in that airport, if you were wondering about it, at the time. The truth is, you should not have been able to see us at all, much less come more than ten feet from us.”

“I knew there was something weird going on, _but I was so tired_ …”

“I’m very glad you approached us.” Aro smiled. “For you see, Renata has a shielding ability, discourages humans to even look at the shielded space and diverts absolutely everyone from crossing the field’s barrier. A very neat and powerful mental gift.”

“Thank you, Master.” This too got a reaction from Bella as she mouthed the word ‘Master’ in perplexed bewilderment.

“I did not see any shield back there in Frisco.”

“You wouldn’t have, Bella.” Renata assured the human, “It’s not exactly visible to anyone but me. But, you should not have even been looking our way, seen _us_ , yet you did the unprecedented by stepping right through it, and you did not even know it.”

“Right, right.” Bella coughed. “Okay. Sooo… what’s _your_ _special gift_ , Aro?”

“Oh, I have several. But,” he looked down to their joined hands. “I can read minds.” And those wide lovely chocolate eyes of hers were back. “Every single thought, memory and emotion a person has ever had, from their subconscious mind. By a single touch.” And that warm hand of hers disappeared from his yet again. This revelation seemed to horrify the human like nothing they had said to her had managed to do thus far.

“… _What?_ ” barely a sound had left her. “You know everything about me now?”

“Just the opposite, angel.” Aro gave her a sly grin.

“You are a very curious human, Isabella Swan.” He repeated. “ _Never_ , in all my long existence _have I ever_ met a person, human, vampire _or otherwise_ , whose mind I had not been able to read. None. _Except you_. ”

“All this is very hard to believe, you understand, right?”

“It’s the truth, angel.” He looked in her still not fully convinced eyes and let the truthfulness of his words show in his eyes, reflect on his face.

Renata jumped to her feet.

“I’ll go get our things, I want to unpack.” Renata informed and Aro waved her away. Bella gave a start when Renata simply disappeared to her human eyes (she could probably only feel the chilly gust of wind that had swept in through the now fully open front door) and reappeared with two of their suitcases after eight seconds, left them in the clear space between the sofa and armchair surrounded table and the fireplace, and after another five she had closed the door behind her and put Bella’s and the last of their suitcases next to the already waiting pair.

It was reasonably warm in the room, the Sinclairs having already turned on the gas heating and he could tell that the fireplace had been lit a couple of days ago. Nevertheless, he threw an intense gaze to the preplaced logs in the fireplace and willed them to catch on fire, as well as simultaneously ignited the twenty-five candles that had been placed all over the room, on the table, by the windows, on the floor. The room lit up in a second. _Very nicely done_.

Bella jumped a bit in her seat.

“Show off,” Renata grumpily remarked.

“I know morphine can cause people to see hallucinations, sometimes, _but that was real_ , right? This just happened.”

“Yes, it did. You are not seeing things. That are not there.”

“ _How did you do that??_ ” Admiration shone in her eyes and could be clearly heard in her question.

“Magic. …And intent.”

“This is _insane_. Can all vampires do what you just did? With the fire.” Renata loudly snorted. His darling had bad manners.

“No, I expect not many can.”

“How about _practically no one_?” Renata retorted.

“Darling. Don’t be like that. I have offered and tried to teach you, have I not? It is not my fault you have no patience.”

“What patience. I’m very patient. It’s practically my middle name. _Renata Patience Volturi_. But manipulating the elements? Commanding fire? You can’t teach the **_impossible_** , Master Aro.”

And Renata was off exploring the house. She’ll come around. In time.

“I can’t believe there are actual vampires. That _you_ are actual vampires. This is such a mind trip.”

“Mhmm.”

“ _Oh My God!_ This is crazy.”

“Do you have fangs?” Renata’s laughter from deep within the upper level could easily be heard by both of them.

“No, we do not. We do, however, have exceptionally sharp teeth.”

“Do you burn in sunl-. Of course you don’t, I saw you perfectly well today. You were fine.”

“We don’t, but then again, many of our kind would not be out in a sunny day.”

The human found all of this fascinating, he could tell. Not a trace of fear left. Excellent.

“Oh?”

“Yes. The venom in our bodies makes our skin shine, for lack of a better word, in direct sunlight. It is very striking and draws unwanted attention immediately. There are those, like Renata and me, who have learned how to circumvent this unfavourable reaction our venom has to sunlight, so that we could move unimpeded, be it night _or day_.”

“Why don’t the rest of you learn this? Wouldn’t it be more convenient?”

“It would, undoubtedly. It takes time, and concentration-”

“Oh, this is a very nice cabin! I love it, Aro! And I’m taking the second floor!”

“Renata, I am trying to teach Isabella about vampires here.” he said in a level tone.

“Sorry, Master. Sorry, Bella.” But his darling was not finished yet. “But I’m still taking the top floor. I’ll fight you for it, if I have to.”

“You can have it. Bella is not going near the second floor.”

“Hey! You can’t tell me where-”

“Do you want to break your other arm as well?” He nodded to the steep stairs and the ~~slippery~~ finely polished steps.

“…No.”

“I though as much.”

“I wouldn’t fall again, you know. Probably. Um, yeah, I… I’ll just sleep in one of the rooms down here.” The girl looked in the direction of the ground floor bedrooms and hid a yawn behind her right hand.

Aro got up from the sofa and seized the handles of his own and Bella’s suitcases.

“Come, Isabella. You are clearly exhausted from your injury, and the subsequent fainting spell, and the resulting hospital visit. You can interrogate me in the morning, after you have had a good night’s rest and slept off the drugs.” Bella swiftly but gingerly got to her feet.

“Wait! You can’t drop such a bombshell on me and expect me to just _go to sleep_.”

“Yes, I can. Come. You can ask me a few more questions while we search for a bedroom for you.”

“… _Fine._ How many vampires are there, really? Shouldn’t people know about them? Or be more suspicious?”

They moved past the fireplace and down the hall. On the left there were the kitchen and the wine cellar and to the right stood two engraved wooden doors.

“There are fewer of us than you are most likely imagining now.” he opened the door to the room closer to the living area and stepped back to let Bella look around for herself. It was a rather nice bedchamber, he supposed, nothing extravagant and the interior was made in soft beige tones. However, for a mere log ~~cabin~~ house in the woods it held an unexpected charm. Bella switched on the artificial light and took in the space.

“The _why_ we are just a myth to humans, is rather simple. Self-preservation. It is a very well guarded secret.” He moved to open the second door and found the room very similar to the neightbouring one, however this was in dark greys and with red accents.

“And people are not more suspicious about us because they do not know of our existence. It is as you said. _Vampires aren’t real_.” Bella had joined him in the room but did not bother with the light this time.

“I want the sandy one.”

“Of course.” He left his suitcase in the middle of the darker room and rolled Bella’s into the other one.

“Thanks.” Bella said as she stepped in the room behind him.

Aro turned to Bella, “Think nothing of it,” and moved to the open door.

“Goodnight, angel. Sleep tight, _and don’t let the bedbugs bite._ ” he sang and winked.

“You too.” _How sweet of her._

“Oh, we don’t sleep.” _She had so much to learn._

“ _Ever?_ ” It appeared he had managed to shock her yet again.

“Ever. You know where to find us, if there is anything you need.” He smirked as he closed the door to the view of the stupefied expression on her face.

***

Bella’s consciousness slowly slipped back to awareness as she was overcome by an oppressing feeling of a persistent ache originating deep within the left side of her body. Which would not go away, but only increased in strength. She attempted to move but dearly regretted the shift a moment later.

Abruptly, it all came back to her.

She’d broken her fucking arm, _again_. For the fifth time. This kind of pain should not be anything new to her. And it wasn’t. But that did not mean it did not suck. It was such a stupid fall. She’d accidentally dropped a book by the top of the staircase and when she had stepped forward and leaned down to pick it up, she’d lost her balance and tripped over it, which led to her tumbling down the stairs. She agreed with the doctor. It was pure luck an arm was the only thing she had broken. A fall like that? It could have been her leg, her skull… her neck.

Of course, it was a miracle as well that she did not have a concussion. However, even if the skin had been broken only on her injured arm, it didn’t mean Bella hadn’t hit her ribs and her back and her left leg really hard on the angular steps. She could practically feel the bruises forming on her left side, on the right side of her back and on her left leg. It was much worse than it had been yesterday… _or was it still today?_ What was- she looked to the green luminescent clock which showed it was only 22:06. She’d slept for little over five hours. Bella had changed in her sleeveless pajamas, for obvious reasons, and tried to fall asleep. She had not believed Aro would turn out to be right and she would fall aslee-

Aro.

Renata.

Her red eyes.

_Aro’s magic._

**Vampires.**

Oh, God.

 _Abruptly,_ _It All Came Back To Her_. Now that she was fully present, Bella could tell it had not been just a very weird figment of her imagination that she had dreamt up in her drug induced state.

Vampires were real. _How?_ And she was currently under the same roof as two of them. Her new friends were a couple of freaking vampires. _Why was she here, with them?_ Aro’d explained, kind of, but. What was their endgame? She had not really thought about it before, she’d still been in shock and then her fascination of them had replaced her worries.

In hindsight, it was not hard to see it. They did not look human, not really. They _looked like_ humans. But there was just something… other, about them.

Bella didn't really think they wanted to eat her. Aro’d practically sworn that she was safe with them. And she believed him. Bella knew that it was a silly thing to do, to trust him, after what he’d revealed to her, but she couldn’t help herself. She believed, _to her very bones_ , that he was telling the truth. About this particular matter, at least. 

And she wanted to know more about them. Vampires. About ~~Aro~~ _them_.

 ~~He~~ _they_ were _fascinating_.

And her broken arm had started to throb more persistently. She needed her painkillers. Now. It would take _at least_ thirty minutes for them to take effect, an hour was the more realistic prognosis. She braced herself and slowly shifted in a sitting position on the bed and let her bare feet drop on the cool floor boards. _Ouch._

Fucking stairs.

Bella vowed she was never _ever_ going to step on another set stairs again.

Bella turned on the light and looked around for her jacket. She’d put the prescribed pills in her jacket pocket. But she couldn’t see it anywhere. …Because she’d shrugged it off as soon as they’d stepped into the living room and later forgotten it on the sofa, when she had suddenly leapt to her feet, the painkillers the last thing on her mind at the time.

“Fuck.”

She dragged herself to her feet and carefully went in search of her forgotten jacket.

She exited the bedroom and stepped into the hall that would have been completely dark if not for the light coming from her open door. She moved to the living room and could see a faint glow from the candles, _still burning_ , the flames in the fireplace long since having died down.

Before she had really stepped into the room, she saw Aro, sitting on the sofa that faced the hall and the stairs to the second floor, with his back to the huge windows. He was sitting in a cross-legged position just like this morning at the hotel (it felt like a week ago) with his eyes closed and his palms on his knees.

He must have heard her because his eyes snapped open and stopped her in her tracks. Because they were scarlet red. Red like fresh blood and focused on her in the dim lit room. They looked, _he looked_ … spooky.

Then the chandelier above him flared up, making her jump a little in surprise, and fully illuminated the whole room. Aro cocked his head to the right side, a slight frown marring his perfect features.

“What is it, angel?” Aro softly questioned, and _really_ , was that _honest concern_ in his voice?

“My stupid arm. Woke me up. I guess the morphine finally wore off,” Bella stepped further into the room, “and I realised I'd forgotten the pills in my jacket.” Her gaze fell to the other sofa where she’d left the jacket earlier.

“Come here.” Aro beckoned her with his hand to join him on the sofa he’d taken for himself.

What… _Okay._

Bella slowly approached him and gingerly sat down two feet away from Aro. She suppressed a wince and noted that the pain in her arm was getting steadily worse. She turned to Aro questioningly and… got lost in his red eyes. She’d had the fleeting thought, when she’d seen Renata pull out her contact lenses, that Aro might have red eyes too, but she hadn’t given it much consideration, then. If she had believed, before, that his pure black eyes were gorgeous, his red ones were _stunning_.

“..ella? Angel?”

“Yes?” He’d been talking to her and she’d _completely tuned out-_

“I said I could help make the pain go away, if you wanted.”

“…What?” Aro smirked, as if entertained by her dim-wittedness. _Not nice_. He did this sometimes. _Got amused by Bella._ _Asshole._ “What do you mean exactly?”

Aro let out a soft sigh, “I could release natural anaesthetic and healing agents we vampires have in our venom, into your bloodstream. It would numb the pain momentarily. It would also make that arm of yours heel that much more quickly.”

“Or I could just take the pills the doctor gave me. …But it’ll be a while until they fully set in.” She did not want to wait that long, but what Aro was suggesting… trusting him on his word about some mysterious pain relieving vampire venom…

“Um… I don’t… Are there any, any side effects to your venom?”

“You want to know if it is safe.” Something like approval flickered in his crimson red eyes until the emotion smoothed out and he gave her a small smile.

Bella nodded.

“It is completely harmless. There are no negative side effects. And there will be no need to take the prescription drugs the doctor gave to you.” It did not sound so bad. _Not bad at all_. It almost sounded too good to-

“But only if you want to. Do you?”

“I… I… Okay. Yes. Yes, I do.” Bella could see that her response had pleased him. 

“Where do… How are we- _eep!_ ”

One moment she was sitting beside him and the next she found herself swiftly and effortlessly lifted and placed on his lap with her back against his hard chest and an arm around her waist.

“ _You!_ …could have warned me.” Heat was rising to her cheeks and her heart was beating way too fast.

“And where would the fun in that be?” he whispered in her ear with a smirk on his lips.

“Relax, angel.”

An impossible thing to do. Now, so close to him, she was engulfed by his sweetly addictive scent and the gravity of her situation finally hit her.

Aro, _her impossible crush_ , had her pressed against him, his left arm wrapped around her and his chilly right one in her hair, brushing it away from the left side of her neck and lingering on her right shoulder.

 _Aro, who was a_ _freaking blood drinking vampire_ , had his nose buried in her hair by her ear as he drew in a long breath and then slowly traced down her bare neck with icy lips.

“Aro-” he pressed a soft cold kiss between her neck and shoulder and Bella’s fucking slow idiot brain finally understood what was about to happen a second ~~too late~~ before his unholy sharp teeth sank into her flesh.

“ _Ow!_ ” His bite hurt like a bitch. She tried to struggle but his hold on her was unexpectedly strong, there was no chance of her getting away.

Bella waited for him to do something, _anything_ , but he just kept his teeth pressed into her skin. After what she thought had been approximately ten excruciating seconds, the bite on her shoulder abruptly stopped aching. She couldn’t feel _any pain_ from where his teeth were still buried in her flesh. After another fifteen, her arm stopped throbbing and soon afterwards all the pain from it vanished without a trace.

Bella could feel the tension seep out of her and she went pliant in his hold, her head dropping back against his hard shoulder.

After another ten or so seconds, in which her breathing levelled out and her heart regained a calm, steady pace, Aro withdrew his teeth and licked over the broken skin. There was the metallic tang of blood in the air, for a minuscule moment, she’d almost missed it, before it, too, was gone.

Her eyes had fallen shut. _When had that happened?_ Bella could feel gentle fingers carding through her hair, and a chilly hand sneaking under her shirt, resting on her side, while his lips travelled further down her shoulder to her upper arm and stopped by the splint, a couple of inches above her elbow.

This time she braced herself for what she knew was to happen but found herself mistaken, _again_ , as Aro bit down and instead of the expected pain, intoxicating pleasure flooded her body, and she let out a soft moan. Bella could feel his smile form on her skin, in response to her unconscious reaction. _Fucking vampires_.

She consciously willed her eyes to open and was presented with the view of the bright crystal chandelier and the arched ceiling of the room, the ornate balcony railing and a dark figure wrapped in shadows behind it. _Renata was watching them_. Oh, sweet. _Not._

She must have seen Bella looking and promptly disappeared from view.

Bella looked to her arm where Aro was still biting on it and found herself transfixed by the sight. His red eyes were half lidded, his straight ponytail half resting on the sofa, red lips wrapped around her skin, and a thin line of her blood slowly oozing down her arm, having escaped his lips.

Aro bit down a little harder and another wave of pleasure hit her. She let her head fall back against his shoulder, but managed to catch the moan, this time. _She won’t make this easy for him, not if she could help it._

His teeth left her arm and his cool tongue traced over the bite, stopping the bleeding.

Aro chuckled as he licked up the blood that had seeped down from the bite.

“Don’t want me to hear you, angel?” _Jerk._

“Renata-”

“-has left.”

“Oh.”

“I would suppose we made her a little hungry.” That could mean-

“…so she went to find dinner for herself?”

“Of course.”

Bella didn’t know how to feel about it. On one hand, it was completely logical. They were vampires ( _what has her life become?_ ), it’s what they did. On the other, some unlucky person was going to end up in a hospital, _or worse_. She did not really know about their _dinner_ habits, _not yet_ , but it was a strong possibility they did not let ~~their victims~~ witnesses go free, _for it was a very well guarded secret, after all, was it not?_ And Aro had told her, without a care…

“-ella. _Isabella_.”

“Yeah?”

“How are you feeling, angel?”

“Oh. Um. I feel… _completely fine_. _You said_ but even so. If I didn’t know any better, I couldn’t tell anything’s broken at all. _It’s incredible_.” And _it was._ She turned around in his lap and looked into his scarlet eyes that were smiling at her.

“I’m glad to hear.” He carefully clasped the palm of her splinted arm and lightly traced her side with his other hand.

Bella couldn’t help the blush that rose to her neck and face. _Damn it._

“Yeah. Well. _Thank you, Aro._ _Really._ ” Bella looked down to her arm, where she expected a fresh bite mark to be, only to find perfectly smooth skin. She could barely see the outline of the crescent teeth marks, they were that imperceptible. Hardly half a shade lighter than her natural skin tone. Her right hand flew to her neck and shoulder where he’d first bitten her but just the same could not feel anything besides undamaged skin. Her head snapped up and she saw a faint smile lingering on his pretty face.

“You could have warned me it was going to _sting a little_.”

Aro snorted and a large, amused smile slowly appeared on his lips. “What else did you expect would happen, angel?”

Bella felt her eyes narrow on their own accord. _He was making fun of her again. The Bastard._

“I fear you would not have agreed if I had told you.” Aro confessed.

“You are such a liar. You know I would have _. I did_. Agree. I would not have changed my mind.”

“I know, angel.”

“So. How did I taste?”

“Like white peaches and tangerines. Utterly lovely. … _And morphine._ That one, not so much.”

“Oh.” Was it weird that she felt disappointed he’d found her blood tainted, even if very slightly? However, she could not deny the effect his venom had on her. Bella really did feel great. Even better. Than before her fall.

“…I can’t feel the other bruises anymore either. You said my arm would heal faster?”

“I would think so, yes. The exact numbers escape me but it should be healed by morning, at the latest. ”

“Completely healed?”

“Yes, Bella.”

“You’re kidding. _There’s no way_.”

“Angel. It will take this long only because it is a bone that was broken and the venom is not as effective in this altered and diluted state, and the lingering drugs in your system is interfering with the process by slowing it down a bit. However, the skin under the splint should have mended already. So, I would say a few hours more before you are right as rain.”

“What about the stitches?”

“Dissolved much faster than was ever intended by the doctor, no doubt.” he smirked.

“You’re impossible.” He just hummed good-naturedly and did not correct her. _Smug bastard_.

“Aro?”

“Yes, angel?”

“You said this is _a very well guarded secret_. So why… why did you tell me, then.”

Aro reached for her, carefully turned her around again and pressed her against his chest, wrapping his arms around Bella and spoke by her ear. “There are several reasons.”

“Such as?”

“Well. For one, you would have figured us out sooner or later. It was just a matter of days.”

“Hmm. Maybe.”

“You would have. Then there is the fact that, while pretending to be human was entertaining, it is a bit taxing to watch what we say and do, all the time, so that we don’t give anything away.”

“Mmmm.” His sweet honeysuckle scent had started to cloud her head a little.

“The third reason - I feel it would do you disservice, _leaving you in the dark_. Because we had hoped, Renata and I, that perhaps you would be amenable to come visit Carlisle and his family together with us. We believe it would be much more… _fun_ , that way. If you’d join us.”

“Oh.” Her eyes had slipped closed again, and she found them to be too heavy to open.

“The fourth one is your little accident. It is a lesser known fact but, those humans who know about us or have deep suspicions about our kind tend to suffer untimely deaths.”

_Hmm, that **was** a bit disturbing._

“It is better you know about the risk than go around completely ignorant of it.”

“And finally, I have no doubt that you would turn out to be an exceptionally gifted vampire, should you agree to become like Renata and me.” … _Aw …Did he really think so?_

“Sleep on my offer, angel.” His voice was sounding fainter and farther away with every moment.

“ _Isabella, would you like to become a vampire?_ ” was the last thing Bella heard, before she slipped into deep sleep, _dead to the world_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm aware they are taking their sweet time getting to Forks, but realistically, it has only been about 24 hours since they've met. And they needed a chance (time) to get to know each other better.  
> 
> 
> _È proprio vero. (Italian)_ – That is so true.
> 
>  _Ma certo, Padrone. (Italian)_ – Of course, Master.
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	9. A friendly warning

_6 Hours and 58 Minutes Earlier...  
  
_

The steam from the near scalding shower had made the air in the bathroom humid to the point it was getting hard to breathe. The air in the bathroom had become foggy and the mirror had misted over long ago.

Emily was not sure, not sure at all, how long she had spent drowning herself under the hot stream, but it could have been anything between thirty minutes and a full hour.

She was desperately trying to stop the shivers that hadn’t left her all the way from Port Angeles to her home. It was slow progress but she was gradually calming down. The highly alert state she had been in for the past hour and a half was waning.

But try as she might, she could not get the feeling of the vampire’s cold lips and his wet tongue, _his chilly hands_ off of her.

**_You tasted wonderful dear_ **

Despite the hot water, goose bumps erupted on her skin.

Emily did not remember her drive back home from Port Angeles. Not really. It was all in a daze. Fragments. Wrenching the car door open, speeding through the city’s streets, then nothing at all, until she came to awareness in front of her house. Emily had sat there for an undecipherable amount of time, white knuckled fingers wrapped around the wheel. Until her half-seeing gaze had slid to the right, to the Blacks’ neighbouring house some sixty metres away from hers on the other side of the road, where Billy Black was sitting in his wheelchair on the porch, looking straight at her.

She had quickly broken away from his eyes and her gaze had fallen to the wine bottle she had completely forgotten about after colliding with- _and_ which she definitely _did not remember_ putting in her car. The sudden realisation that the vampire had been in her car felt as if lightning had struck her.

She’d almost fallen on her ass throwing herself out of the car and running for her house. Good thing the door was unlocked, as she had left the keys in the car and she _would not be able_ to retrieve them.

Emily had made quick work of locking herself in the bathroom and tearing her clothes off to get under the water faster and wash the memory of the vampire and his chilly touch down the drain.

With little success.

**_Emily Young_ **

“Emily!”

 _Sam._ Billy must have finally tracked down Sam.

Shit. She was not. She did not. _Know_. How to tell him.

“Are you okay?”

There were only faint traces of the steam in the air as it appeared she’d spent all the hot water and it was now running barely lukewarm.

Emily turned off the shower and stepped out on the bath rug, and took a towel from a cupboard and a large white bathrobe that was hanging on a hook on the door.

“Emily!” Sam was still standing on the other side of the door.

She made quick work of drying herself off and wrapping herself in the large (Sam’s) robe and stumbling to the mirror. She could still feel his touch on her face and on her neck, despite the prolonged shower. Emily swept her palm on the steamed up mirror to see if she could see his touch as well as fell it, but froze as soon as the mirror cleared.

Because.

There were no scars on her face.

There should be scars on her face.

There were no scars on her face.

Anymore.

How.

“Em, do you hear me?”

She remembered all too well how the vampire had scratched her face open again, right over the scars, she had not seen him move, only felt the pain that had erupted when his nails left deep incisions in her flesh.

But-

There was nothing but her old, unscarred face staring back at her, the one before Sam had-

“Emily! Open the door!”

_Shit!_

No. There was something there, she leaned closer to the mirror and saw a shade paler skin, _not white, thank Gods_ , just as her skin would look if there was no tan on her face. Emily lifted her hand to the right side of her face and traced the faint lines of her once again smooth skin with trembling fingers.

Her eyes slid to her neck and she turned her head to the right a bit to see the spot the vampire had scratched open and drank from. There was nothing there to be seen as well. Just a short thin line of the same pale skin.

How? She’d never heard of anything like this being possible.

**_There, as good as knew_ **

It seemed the legends had some major gaps in them. What a surprise.

“Emily, I swear if you don’t open the door this secon-”

She went to the door, unlocked it and slowly stepped through, into the hall.

_And then there was silence._

She raised her head and looked straight at Sam and saw pure shock had taken over his face.

_Great._

She brushed past him and went to the kitchen to make a cup of hot (Irished up) tea for herself.

Emily filled the kettle with water and put it on the stove. She noted that her hands were still shaking. _Will they ever stop shaking?_ She squeezed her eyes shut and put her hands flat on the counter and took several deep breaths. She could hear Sam slowly approaching her from behind her back and then she found herself in a soft, warm embrace, nothing like the hard ~~but oh so gentle~~ hold of the vampire.

And Emily’s forced calm crumbled.

She started crying in his arms, silently at first, then harder. And harder. It was loud and ugly and she could not do anything to stop her hysterics.

And all through it Sam kept her in his arms and told her that it was okay and that she was fine. That he was here.

 _That he was here now._ Yes. _Now._ But not _before._

And she was not okay. And she _definitely_ was not _fine._

After some time that felt like hours, but was most probably no more than fifteen minutes, Emily had stopped sobbing and had calmed down considerably.

They were just standing there, in the kitchen, silent.

“… _Em_.” His voice was so gentle. “What happened to you?”

His question caused her to suck in a loud breath. _Not again._

“Shhhh.” He practically carried her to the table and set her down on a chair. “Just. Wait for a bit. I’ll make you that tea.”

After turning the stove on and some fumbling through the cupboards, a couple of minutes later he placed a steaming cup of black peppermint tea on the table in front of her.

“Bourbon.” _Gods_ , her voice sounded choked. Emily cleared her throat. “I- I need bourbon too.”

Her request made Sam pause for a moment but he obliged nonetheless.

A sequence of knocks sounded on the front door just as he set the whiskey bottle in front of her.

“It must be Billy. He called, earlier…”

Emily snatched the bottle and proceeded to pour the bourbon in the cup, until the liquid threatened to spill over the rim. _Not nearly as much as was needed._

Another knock sounded and Sam went to open the door.

“Billy. Harry.”

“Sam.”

Emily looked to the figures of Billy Black and Harry Clearwater on the other side on her front door, both of whom she could see from sitting at the table, as it was conveniently placed to provide a clear view to the door.

 _Nosy old men._ They were worse than her nana June and her aunt Abby.

She leaned down and took a long slurp from her cup. Who cared about manners around here anyway? Definitely not her, not right now.

“Is she all right? Billy said she looked quite distressed earlier.”

_Nosy old codgers._

Sam turned his head back to her and frowned as he seemed to decide on an answer to give them.

“She’s better.”

The hot alcohol infused tea was working its magic. Her hands had finally stopped shaking and the deep warmth of the strong drink had finally chased off the feeling of cold completely.

“Might as well let them in, Sam. I believe this is something they should hear as well.”

Better to get this over with as soon as possible. And they needed to know, either way. She couldn’t keep this to herself. Not that she could escape their suspicion anyway, not with the state of her face.

She could see how Sam's shoulders stiffened and how his grasp on the door tightened.

“All right. Come in.”

Emily took one more sip from her irished up drink and gestured for them to sit down at the table.

Harry wheeled Billy in the kitchen and she saw the exact moment both of them fully registered the condition of her face. _Is this the reaction she is going to get from all the people who had seen her scarred face?_

Finally, they all found their seats.

But she just… didn’t know how to start.

“Ems?”

“I. Right. Right…”

She looked out of the window and saw that it had started to snow. Big soft snowflakes slowly descending from the dark blue skies…

“Emily.”

Her gaze fell back to their expectant and concerned faces. And then shifted down to the contents of her cup.

“I went to Port Angeles today. To get the last of the shopping done… and a haircut,” she’d completely forgotten about that part. She had had a half hour until her appointment when she’d finished with the presents and had decided to get some wine in the interim, “I did not get a haircut… Obviously.”

“I had some time left before my appointment and decided to go get some wine.” Why did she have to go to that store? _Why_. “For Christmas.”

“When I was leaving the store, I tripped on the doorstep and would have face planted on the sidewalk, but- _Gods_.” Tears were attempting a comeback so she swiftly poured some more bourbon in her yellow tea cup and took a long sip.

“Emily…”

“I’m fine. I just. I tripped and would have fallen and surely smashed the bottle but someone caught me. And the wine.”

She lifted her eyes and saw all of them listening carefully but still not knowing where she was going with her tale.

“A vampire. It was a vampire that caught me.” She could see colour drain from Billy’s and Harry’s faces. And her Sam. He looked as if her words had punched all the breath from his lungs.

“WHAT?!”

“Are you quite sure, dear?”

“Was it one of the Cullens?”

She let out a bitter laugh.

“As sure as I can ever be. And no, he was a complete stranger.”

That seemed to calm them down a little. As if what was running through their minds were _“then the Cullens may live another day”_. Funny.

“I’ve seen all the Cullens in town, from a distance. And I would have remembered if I had seen this one before.”

Her Sam was drawing in even breaths and visibly straining to keep his cool.

“He had the same white skin, although… No. That’s not quite right. He was even whiter than them. His skin was powdery white.”

“What happened?” Harry quietly prompted.

“As I said, he caught me, and at first I did not see his face. I just heard this stranger tell me to be more careful.” Now they had light frowns on their faces.

“I was apologising, saying it was my fault and then I looked up at him and, and then I understood what he was.”

“And I figure he saw me recognise him. I. I think that was the reason he went after me.” Emily finished in a whisper.

“WHAT!” Sam let out a low growl, his hands clenched in white knuckled fists, a vein pulsing on his left temple.

“Sam, calm down!” Billy, who sat in front of her and to the right from Sam, reprimanded.

“Please continue, Emily.” Harry encouraged her.

“Um... I got out of his hold and went to my car. I had almost reached the door, hurriedly searching for the right key when the vampire… he appeared in front of me.” She lifted her cup to her lips and took another gulp. She could do this. _She had to_.

“I was so stupid. I panicked. But I was just so scared. So fucking scared.”

“What did you do?” Billy asked.

“I. I ran to the beach. Away from him.”

She could see Billy wince and Harry grimace. She did not look to Sam. Emily did not want to see his expression.

“ _Ems_ …”

“ _I know,_ okay?! It was stupid.”

“Alright. Alright, dear. Nobody is saying that.” But thinking it loudly and clearly.

“Then what happened next?” Billy asked with curiosity.

“I had gotten almost to the shore, when-”

“-when what?” Harry was leaning forward.

“I’d tell you, if you'd let me finish!”

“Okay, okay. Sorry.”

Old geezers.

“I was running one minute and the next he was just there, a few feet in front of me. And I just… froze.” Sam reached for her hand and put his large warm ~~paw~~ palm over her hand. It was such a contrast from the v-

“Anyway. He was very curious. Asked me how I knew what he was. Said it was supposed to be a secret.”

“And then he said the weirdest thing. He asked if ‘I was spoken for’.” She saw understanding dawn on them and the expected disgust creep up on their faces. “I did not understand at the time, but-”

“There are people who choose to become one of them out of their free will. People among us. Out there. Who want...” Black was clearly repulsed by the notion.

“Yes. That is what I figured.”

“Anyway. As he saw that it was pointless to ask me he- um.”

“Em?” Sam gently squeezed her hand and it gave her a bit more support to continue.

“He took off one of his gloves. _His teeth looked so sharp_ …” Emily shook her head. “Anyway, he said that he would take a look for himself. He was about to touch my face and I almost screamed, but he- he said that he would ri- _rip my throat out_ , if I, if I did that.”

Emily felt Sam withdraw his hand and saw him ball his palms into fists on the table top. Then she looked up to the serious but sympathetic faces of Harry and Billy.

“It was… strange. He was so nice about it. Like an indulgent parent…”

“Emily.”

“Wha-. Oh. Right. _Sorry._ Then he touched my cheek with his ice cold hand. And suddenly he knew my name. _About the wolves_. About _you_ , Sam! _Us_. I. I think he somehow read my memories. That’s what I think he did.”

They all looked visibly shocked. Their eyebrows had practically disappeared and they appeared-

“How could he-”

“ _How could I know!_ One second he was brushing his hand against my face and the next he knew everything!”

“How is that possible…”

“I don’t know.”

“And I think your facts about the cold ones are wrong. Well, at least incomplete.”

“What do you mean?” Sam asked and he sounded, not quite angry, but frustrated. Emily could feel this whole conversation was very hard for him.

“We were at the beach. He was… so close. So close and the sun was shining through the sparse clouds directly on him. _His skin did not shine, or sparkle or whatever it was you said it did_. At all. No more than mine did.”

Deep frowns etched themselves on their faces.

“Alright. What happened next?”

“He said that his wife had been killed by werewolves. _Bitten_ by werewolves. He called them _the Children of the Moon_ , said you were just an overgrown puppy compared to the real ones.”

A deep rumble started to rise from Sam’s chest while Billy and Harry exchanged looks.

“He. _Sam_ ,” tears surged to her eyes once more.

“He said that his wife had been ‘innocent’ and that he, that he... was _tempted_ to take me _away from you_ , since he now hated dogs or something…”

“That fucking leech!”

“Sam!” Harry and Billy barked.

“Emily. Dear.”

“Please, continue.”

“He said I was _lucky_ , that _you, Sam,_ were lucky because he did not want to _steal me from this world... today_. But- _Gods_ ,” her heart had started to beat faster and she lifted and drank all the remaining whiskey from her yellow cup.

“… _He was so beautiful_.” That was not what they wanted to hear. At all. She could see. Her waxing poetic about the ‘disgusting bloodsucker’. “The Cullens. I guess they are beautiful, in an Edwardian style sort of way. But this vampire? He was _beyond beautiful._ He looked like an angel.”

_Her Angel of Death._

“And his eyes.. When I first looked into his eyes, they were pitch black.”

“But after...”

“After?"

"Emily. What happened after? Did he do something?”

“He. He would have killed me, if I’d refused. I saw it in his eyes. Despite his words.”

“His words...?” Sam prompted.

“He asked if I would allow him to drink from me. Said he had not had a drop of blood for a month... that he did not need much.” They paled. Sam had leapt to his feet and was pacing the living room and kitchen. “…That he would not harm me.”

“And did you...?”

“Of course, I agreed! He would have killed me, otherwise! What else was I to do!?”

Silence rung through her small kitchen.

“And he was _so strong_. I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t do anything.”

She knew she was hurting Sam, by retelling all this. That it was so, so hard for him to hear what had happened to her while he was not there to protect her. But he had to know.

“Did he hurt you?” Harry asked in a quiet voice. Full of sympathy.

“He. No. He was gentle. At first. I didn’t even feel it when he cut my neck open before he started to drink my blood.”

They looked green, the old farts. Sam looked positively sick, like he was one moment away from throwing up.

“But when he drew back a couple of minutes later. His red eyes looked to my face and slid to the scars. It all happened so fast. One moment he was still and the next he had my face scratched open again.” Sam roared and punched the wall. Hard. There was now a hole in her wall in perfect size of Sam’s fist. Joy. His knuckles had started to bleed on the ground.

“And he- he did something. As soon as he opened the scars, he licked them over and they did not hurt anymore. Then he just let me go.”

“I first saw that they were gone in the bathroom mirror.” Emily inclined her head to the direction of the bathroom.

“Why would he do something like that?”

“I don’t know why he did it. _We did not exactly chat_. …I didn’t know vampires could do something like this.”

“We weren’t aware they could either.” Billy replied in a thoughtful voice. “How _are_ you feeling, Emily? Any weird-”

“-cravings for your blood? Are you worried I am going to start turning into one of them any minute now, Chief Black?” She asked in an icy tone.

A loud growl sounded from Sam at her words.

“No, dear.” Which sounded very much like ‘Yes, dear. Exactly, dear.’ to her ears.

“Billy, don’t be ridiculous. The girl is fine. We could tell if there was… something not right with her.” Sam growled again, louder and more threateningly, which made the old coots quickly shut up.

“How did the fucker look.”

“Sam. Stop.”

“Tell me! _I’m going to kill him!_ ”

“SAM!”

Her scream seemed to stop his raging rant.

“This vampire. He’s not like the Cullens. He’s bad news. _Really bad news_.”

“Explain.”

“I don’t think you should try to track him down.”

“Of course I’m going to hunt that son of a bitch dow-”

“Sam! You are not listening to me!”

Okay, now they were listening.

“There was something about him... what he said. He sounded- _Uhh_. I cannot explain it. He said his wife had died one hundred years ago. In 1903. But. He said _to him_ it felt like it had happened a moment ago.”

“What...”

“ _A hundred years_ , just a moment for him. I think he is old. Very old. I’ve seen the Cullens. How they are. How fake they act.”

“But, _Sam._ The Cullens. They look young, but ... they don’t seem old, you know? Even if they are.”

“This vampire? He... felt _ancient_.”

They all collectively shuddered.

“Emily. Dear girl. We have to know what he looked like. If he comes near here…” That was a reasonable request, she supposed.

“More than a head taller than me. But shorter than Sam. Slender but athletic. I couldn’t tell his age. Late twenties, early forties? I can’t... Um. Long black hair tied in a ponytail. No. Blue. Blue hair.”

“ _Blue?_ ”

“Yes. Odd, I know. The sun was shining through it. It looked more blue than black. Fancy clothes. White shirt. Dark coat. Red shoes... _and he was so beautiful, Sam_.”

Harry cleared his throat.

“Anything else you can remember?”

“Accent. Something exotic. Italian, maybe? Definitely something European.”

“What could he be doing in Port Angeles? Passing through? To where?” they all new that Forks and their land were very close to Port Angeles… _as were the Cullens_.

“I believe… he was there to buy wine.”

And now they looked dumbfounded. A vampire buying wine? Billy and Harry eyed the contents of the bourbon bottle and _oh, no, they didn’t-_

“I’m not fucking drunk. It’s what it looked like.”

“The only reason he went after me was because he saw that I knew what he was. If I hadn’t known the truth about vampires, he wouldn’t-”

“You can’t know that, dear.”

“I guess we’ll never know.”

“Ems, do you have any of your clothes from today? I want to check if I can catch his scent from them.”

“ _Sam_ …” Emily closed her eyes. “…On the bathroom floor.” He went to the bathroom and started to sniff her discarded items of clothing. How romantic. Every girl’s dream to have their significant other snuff their dirty clothes.

“There is nothing I can pick up. The steam from the shower must have damaged any trace left from him.”

“Well there is always the car.”

“The car?”

“Yeah. _The car._ I realised only after I got back but he must have been in it.”

“What!”

“Whatever do you mean, dear?”

“The wine bottle I had bought earlier was on the passenger seat. And I’m certain I did not take it back from him after I tripped.”

The three of them stilled and held a long staring contest.

Then Sam sprinted to her car.

…

“ _Mother_ fucker!”

***

_Present Moment…  
  
_

It was such a peculiar sensation.

To have a _silent_ , soundly sleeping human in his arms.

To be fair, Aro had waited for this to happen, his sweet scent having a very suggestive, even persuasive effect on the girl. However, it was not the only reason his angel was now peacefully sleeping in his arms.

Despite what he had told the girl about the diluted state of his venom was true, he had, perhaps, very intentionally withheld the little titbit about the fact that he had injected far too much of it in her system. Far too much. Just a quick graze would have done the job of mending her broken arm in the generous time estimate he had given her. She had not been able to tell something was wrong (and really, there **_was_ **_nothing wrong_ ) just that his venom had made her intensely euphoric for a little while. Nevertheless, it had been a major shock to her whole body even if Isabella could not tell this due to the anaesthetic coursing through her veins, and falling asleep after such a strong dose was to be more than expected.

Oh, Aro knew that it would not pose any harm to the human. He was very careful and he’s had countless centuries of practice, after all. Granted, it has been some time since he had last experimented on his meals with his venom, but as he had already mentioned, he had fully mastered the art many millennia ago. One did not forget such things. To use a contemporary human saying, _it was just like riding a bicycle_.

Nevertheless, in all his previous experiments, the food which had had the privilege of being his unwitting guinea pigs, had exhibited a range of interesting side effects to the venom over-flooding their blood. They were never _bad_ results, per se. Never did any harm to the humans, however, the side effects did vary from very mild to almost palpable.

Those on the weak side of the spectrum showed nary a change, save for a bit more pronounced senses, such as clearer vision, more acute hearing, heightened reflexes (he dearly hoped Bella will get at least those and have her abysmal, perilously inclined equilibrium corrected, for the time being, until time for her inevitable change finally came).

Further down the spectrum, more visibly apparent changes could be perceived on top of the previously stated, such as smoothening of wrinkles, disappearance of freckles and sunspots, minor scarring or grey hair regaining its original pigmentation, just to name a few.

Another level was the food regaining full perception of sound if they had suffered partial or obsolete hearing loss, sight if they had been blind, sometimes the terminally ill made a full _miraculous_ recovery (before becoming his dinner).

The most prominent changes, however, could be observed in those humans who showed potential for gifts, such as his angel. Their mere presence gained a more mysteriously charged air, and one would have to be a complete fool not to have at least an inkling, that there was something not quite right with those humans. The venom in its benign state brought out their potential powers even further to the surface, enabling them to become partly aware of their abilities still in their human lives, if they had not already been aware, before.

He must confess he, _they_ had released a few of them _back in the wild_ , to see what would happen. Under close monitoring of course (and whilst it was not as cardinal for the food to be completely unsuspecting of their kind a few millennia ago, one should never be too overconfident. Humans were much more vigilant of the monsters among them long ago anyway).

For one, they lived considerably longer lives after meeting him. Years even, not months or weeks as was wont to happen when humans without any real connection to magic _(unlike Miss Young and her tribe)_ crossed paths with vampires.

For another, his venom seemed to not lose its effect in the slightest ( _imagine that_ … needless to say, he wasn’t terribly surprised). Also, they healed faster. Their brain worked quicker. These humans retained the venom created properties until their eventual demises.

If they happened to have children _after_ his little experimentation, before they died a few years later, this is when it became interesting. The children, most of the time, exhibited heightened mental sensitivity, and were often gifted themselves. He had usually turned the most promising ones. Long ago. It had been _such a long time ago_. He and… and _Didyme_. His sister had loved to engage in their _cultivation_ of gifted vampires and he had not been able to find it in himself to continue their pet project ever since-. It had been **_her_** _hobby_. Before… _before_ -

His divinely warm angel stirred in his arms a bit and pressed her cheek into the crook of his neck and sighed in contentment. She was such a lovely human. Aro lowered his nose to her mahogany hair and drew in a deep breath. Her uniquely lovely scent was still the same, sweet white peaches and fragrant tangerines, however, it had gained a barely there undertone of spices, cloves to be more exact, and an even sweeter vanilla flavour.

If one was acquainted with him and were familiar with his scent, and knew what to look out for, they would be able to tell that he’d done _something_ to the girl. Less intuitive ones would just presume that his scent clung to her due to their close proximity. Either way, hopefully this would warn any other vampires with _ideas_ to give his angel a wide berth. Not that he planned to let Isabella out of his sight until her turning. He would not take the risk. And he would kill anyone who so much as considered not heeding his warning.

He traced her bare arms, marvelling at the sensation of utter blankness from her; he’d had billions of second hand experiences of how skin to skin touch felt to ‘normal’ individuals, however, he had never been able to feel for himself (in his undead existence, at least. His human life before his turning amounted to barely half a per cent of his time as an immortal. Aro counted it a win that he could recall the region from where he had hailed, as well as his native tongue in which his… _Didyme_ and he used to chat in, between themselves, though he did not know the name of the language, and Aro doubted he would ever meet anyone who could shed light on this insignificant puzzle piece of his first life). Well. Dead humans and dead vampires were silent too, but Bella's blankness was a completely different silence.

And now he could. And indulge he did. Her skin felt so soft, so delicate… so fragile under his marble hands.

She lightly shivered and pressed even closer ~~to him~~ , _no_ , not to _him_ , _to his thick cashmere sweater_. It was so apparent, in hindsight, that Aro felt a flicker of embarrassment shoot through him for assuming anything but the obvious. His angel was steadily losing heat due to sleep, her state of undress (most evidently explained by the splint on her arm) and the temperature drop in the spacious room with the rapidly approaching nightly hours, to say nothing about his inherent coldness that was radiating through the fabric of his clothes and leeching away her warmth.

Aro gently slid his arms under her knees and her bare upper back, her head still resting on his shoulder, before rising from the sofa and carrying her back to bed.

Light was pouring into the hallway from her room as he stepped into it and carefully, as not to jostle her, placed her sleeping figure on the sheets. He truly had no idea when the last time he _tucked a human in bed_ had been, if ever. The thought made a smile form on his lips, a completely independent action that had escaped his control.

Aro sat there on the edge on her bed and pulled Isabella’s previously discarded down duvet over her, effectively cocooning the human in. After a few minutes he could practically see warmth return to her by the slight rosy shade to her cheeks. _Lovely._

He got to his feet and headed to the door, switching off the light before returning to his previous spot on the sofa.

He’d been meticulously going through millennia old archives and submerging himself in memories, his own and those of _others,_ before Bella had woken and left her bed in search of her painkillers, effectively halting his efforts.

It had been such a different time then. A different civilisation altogether, among many others that had born, flourished and died long before the current one. He was going through his memories of early Ancient Greek period, having already shifted through some of his memories of an age when the pyramids of Ancient Egypt were not even a flicker of thought to anyone. It had been a completely different climate there then. Not a dune of sand in sight. Utterly unrecognisable.

The main purpose of this little trip down memory lane was to brush up on some (a few dozen) of the long since extinct languages from that time, such as Cypro-Minoan and Archaic Egyptian among many, many others. Perhaps it was a little… _over the top_ , _if you will_ , but when he had the time, he liked to do things thoroughly.

It was not quite as easy as it sounded; especially if he wanted to functionally relate them to the current Italian that he had taken preference to in the last millennia.

The reason for this tiny mental exercise was to keep his secrets under another layer of protection from prying telepathic eyes and ears. Not that he really thought the boy could hear anything he did not want him to hear or see anything Aro did not want him to see.

His plan when visiting the Cullens was to limit his visual thinking (this, however, did not mean he could not throw in the more disturbing (to some) flashes of his memories for the sensitive eyes of vampires that condemned the true nature of their own kind, if the occasion called for it) as he was sure the boy could view every vision the seer had from her mind, so this was categorically off the table. Aro could easily ensure Carlisle’s firstborn would not have the slightest whiff of his true sentiment.

Additionally, these languages were not some, which could be learned overnight by acquainting oneself with the correct dictionary and online audio lessons. They were dead, no more meaningful, if any, written examples having survived, much less any evidence that could even identify the spoken language. He’d come to the conclusion that his thoughts would be more than safe as he planned to fluctuate between several tongues every few hours. He was fairly confident he was going to give the impertinent boy a headache.

Oh, he had seen too much through other vampires’ eyes to think better about the boy. _Well_ , there was always the chance of him being wrong about Carlisle’s first son, _he supposed_ , and he would welcome the revelation with open arms, but alas, he highly doubted such a thing would come to pass.

 _Anyhow._ This left only Renata (as he strongly speculated that Bella would able to evade the boy’s gift) but he had a suspicion that her innate gift of aversion would similarly come to her aid, plus, he doubted the boy spoke her native Maltese dialect as well as couple of other languages she had picked up in Europe before joining the Volturi in 1802. _Plus_ , he’d taught her Venetic, Pictish and Akkadian. She should do fine.

_There had been so much blood spilled_

_Such senseless killing_

_All those wars_

_All that violence_

Sometimes he marvelled at the scale of destruction and the unquenchable bloodlust humans were capable of. To appoint the title of ‘monsters’ uniquely to his kind and, perhaps, to the Children of the Moon would be the height of folly and hypocrisy.

“ _Master._ ” Darling Renata had returned.

Aro opened his eyes and saw her standing a metre from him, two paper bags full of something _food?_ in her arms, but with such heart-break in her venomy scarlet eyes, bright red from a recent feed.

No wonder the Guard was worried about him, he’d glimpsed as much from more minds of his coven than just sweet Renata’s.

“Renata. _Darling._ I-” _had lost track of his surroundings to the point of not sensing another vampire approach him, even if it was one of his most trusted._

“You were what?” Renata put the bags on the table and sat down on the closest armchair. “Meditating? Thinking? _Reminiscing?_ ”

“Anyone could have come in here and _beheaded_ you! _Anyone!_ ”

“Darli-”

“Quiet.” She said the word in a whisper but it cut off his like a whip. Aro’s lips drew in a tight line but he did stop his attempt at placating her.

“I left you alone because I thought I could count on you to deal by yourself with _anybody_ who showed up on our doorstep, be it vampire, wolf or an army of newborns!”

“But what do I find, instead?” If it were possible, her voice would have broken.

Aro could not help his wince-

“You. _Completely vulnerable_ ,” -and his cringe, “just sitting here, tempting your beloved Fate,” she drew in a desperate breath.

“ _Cos'era questa volta?_ _La tua regina morta?_ _Tua sorella mor_ -”

“ ** _Basta_** ** _!_** ” Aro shouted.

Renata looked as if he had hit her. He had _never_ shouted at her. Not like this.

“ _Carissima_...” this was all his fault. “Come here.”

He opened his arms and suddenly found himself flat on his back on the sofa with an armful of Renata.

“ _Mi dispiace, bambina_ _,_ ” Aro pressed his lips to the crown of her head. “I forgot myself.”

And Renata started sniffling. It was such a pitiful sound… to hear a vampire struggling to cry.

“I _promise_ to be more careful,” the sniffling got louder, “ _Ti prometto_ _._ ” His hand stroked lightly over her head.

“This will not happen again. You have my word.”

Minutes passed until darling Renata had stopped her dry crying but still stayed tightly wrapped around him, not letting go.

“I did not hear you approach me because I trust you with my life, dearest.” Renata pressed herself even closer to him.

“I have not told this to anyone. Not even to Marcus. What I am about to tell you,” Aro began carding his fingers through her hair. “And I expect you to not repeat this to another soul.” Renata stilled and he could tell he had her undivided attention.

“My... _little sister,_ ” he could feel Renata withhold her breath, “Didyme.”

He took a deep fortifying breath but could still feel venom _flood his eyes_.

“She... set fire to herself and jumped from the West Tower.” _And spill over._

It should not be possible but Renata became even more rigid. “But... everyone-”

“Is wrong.”

“She wanted to die, you see. Turns out she had for a long time. Wanted _me_ to be the one to-” _He could feel it roll down_

“I could not.” He said in a whisper. “I refused.” _the sides of his face_

“We argued. But you know how that tower is, don’t you, darling.” _and suddenly his ears were wet_

“Those outside of it cannot piece together a word that’s been said inside its walls.” Renata quietly replied. “Not even vampires… The sound gets too distorted.”

“Yes. It was built especially with this reason in mind. A true piece of acoustic marvel.”

“The Guard had heard our raised voices. There were several of them who saw me at the exact place where she had stood… before her fall.”

“… _Master_ -”

“ _Shush_ , dearest,” he kissed her hair again. “It was the crux for my obsession with mastering fire. If I could have done then what I can now… _I could have saved her_.”

“ _Aro_ -”

“But I could do _nothing_ but _watch her burn to **ash**_.”

“I’m so sorry. So, so sorry, Aro.”

It felt strange for someone else to know. He’d never told anyone, not even His Darling. He _should ha_ -

“It was not your fault, Master Aro, you **must** know this.” _But it was. He’d failed-_ “…Not even Master Marcus?”

“Just you, dearest. It is kinder to let him believe it was I who killed her than for him to know the truth.” She wrapped him in a crushing hug.

They laid there together for a long while.

“How was dinner?” he eventually asked.

“How was _yours?_ ” she asked with a devilish smirk. He couldn’t help but laugh.

“Delicious. If not for the drugs in her blood.”

“I’ve never understood why they bother you so much. I can ignore them with ease.”

“You will, once you’re as-”

“ _Don’t_ remind me of your age. _Please_.” Renata had the weirdest issues sometimes.

“I made sure she won’t keep taking them. I wish to have her again. Properly.”

“Bella seemed to enjoy it quite a bit,” _that she did_. “What exactly did you do to her?”

“Injected her with my venom.” This made her lift her head from his chest and look into his eyes with her widened ones.

“…Master-”

“Do not worry. I made sure it would only heal her and give her a bit of an advantage before her turning, nothing more.”

“I guess that’s something, at least. It’d slipped my mind we could do that.”

“Now. How was _yours_ , dearest?” he could not help but smirk himself.

Renata crossed her arms on his chest and laid her chin on them, her eyes gleaming.

“ _Oh, Aro_. He was _such_ a _gentleman_. Helped me change the tire on this _dark_ and _lonely_ road in the middle of the woods. Not a soul for miles…”

“ _My damsel in distress_." He said with a pleased smile. "I’m glad you had fun, darling.” 

“What’s in the bags?” he looked to the brown paper clad parcels.

“Don’t you know already?”

“No, dearest.” He’d touched only her hair and clothes. As had Renata. It was practically ingrained in him by now. To not touch someone’s skin with his bare hands if he did not intend to see their mind.

“ _Well_ , in that case. After my meal, I remembered about Bella and realised there was no food for her here. So I went to Port Angeles and got her something for breakfast. And while in the market, I also realised that if you indeed decided to part with a few items from Sadami’s generously handed-over porcelain collection, I got us some boxes, bows and wrapping paper.”

“How thoughtful of you, dear.”

“Besides, humans have to eat every day, right?”

“They do, usually. …Speaking of Port Angeles.” Aro lightly traced the tips of his fingers over her spine. “I met the most interesting surprise there.”

“Again? How many surprises are we going to get?”

“I went in hunt for that bottle for Carlisle and at the door of Patrick’s shop I find myself catching a divinely smelling human girl.”

“ _Another one?_ ”

“Suspend your disbelief for a second more, will you.”

Renata huffed, but let him continue.

“So, I catch her and she is all _‘Excuse me, sir, I’m so sorry, sir’_ and then… she looks up _and recognises me_.” Renata lifted herself on her elbows on his chest and eyed him with a small crease between her eyebrows. “And then she turns around _and runs away_.” Renata barked a laugh and her eyes shone in entertainment.

“And what did you do _then_ , Master?”

“I followed her, of course!”

“ _Nooo_...”

“Turns out, she’s from a small Native American tribe just a few kilometres down from Forks. From the same reservation Bella mentioned before. And she recognised me because there are legends about ‘ _the Cold Ones_ ’ passed down from generation to generation, about our kind.”

“That _is_ … _interesting._ I suppose.”

“Precisely my thoughts. _However._ That is not all. Their legends talk also about _the protectors_ of the Quileute tribe’s people. They are shape shifters that turn into wolves at will.”

“Wolves?!”

“ _Not_ the real werewolves. They look like huge wolves, but the colouring is off. You would never think them real wolves if you saw them. Besides, the Children of the Moon barely resemble regular wolves anyway.”

“ _And_ , strangely enough, her boyfriend happens to be exactly such a shape shifter. The only one who has currently had the gene manifest in a shift among the tribe’s people. From the little snippets the girl had been told and seen, I gather his shift had initiated because of the Cullens moving back to Forks. The magic in their veins is hyper sensitive to the threat of nearby vampires. It seems as if no other of our kind had passed through for quite some time. I believe there will be a surge of new wolves since there are so many Cullens there now, all at once. And when we arrive, it will tip the balance even more.”

“Are they dangerous?”

“I suppose they are, if they manage to get the element of surprise on their side. Otherwise? They are not poisonous to us, not like the Moon’s Children, the tables are turned in this case. I reckon being able to shift at any time is a plus for them. Numbers work in their favour. The bigger the pack the more efficient they get. They _too_ have sharp teeth, but. That’s about it. Weaker than the average vampire, slower too.”

“Alright. What did you do to the girl?”

“The girl… _Emily Young_. She was a very tasty human. _Hmmm_ … Why, I let her go after having my fill.”

“You did what!” Renata’s bell like laughter filled the quiet room.

“Let her go back to him, yes.” He felt his shark smile resurface. “You see, it’s some twisted magic for these wolves. They _imprint_ _on_ or fall deeply in love with only _one_ human for as long as their short lives last. None other compares to this one person, after.”

“He’s going to be so pissed! Oh, Sweet Circe!”

“ _I know_. However, that was not the only reason I did it.”

“Oh? What other reason could there possibly be?”

“It seems my dear old friend Carlisle has been quite the beneficial vampire and had formed a treaty with one of the tribe’s chiefs when he’d first settled in the Olympic Peninsula some seventy years ago.”

“What did they agree on?” Renata slid her hands to his sides and turned her head to the side, her right ear to his chest, so that he would pet her hair with his other hand. She reminded him of a lynx, a bit. Deadly, rare, and exceptionally beautiful, but still such an affectionate creature when in a pleasantly content mood.

“Carlisle and his veggie followers won’t hunt humans _or_ turn humans while they reside in Forks. And they have agreed to not cross the treaty line of the Quileute lands.”

“ _In exchange_ , the tribe lets them be in peace and keeps our secret from anyone outside their people. Not that they would tell anyone anything anyway, since they are supernatural beings themselves.”

“A fact, of which Carlisle had failed to inform us, even if it is expected of him or anyone else to disclose such a discovery.”

“Perhaps he’d feared you and Caius would come and slay every last one of the dogs.” Aro hummed a little in contemplation.

“I was not in my right mind at the time. I would have allowed it. I supposed he had reason to protect them. The stupid dogs do not even comprehend what an enormous favour my friend had done for them.”

“ _Stregone Benefico, infatti._ ” A ghost of a smile slid over Aro’s face at Renata’s words.

“Regardless, it would be bad taste to indirectly break the peace between them.”

“But you _did strain it_ , Master.”

“ _That I did_.” Aro did not even try to contain his smug smile.

“Oh, I love this. _Please_ tell me we are going to take vacations more often from now on, Master.” Renata leaned up to look in his eyes with naked, childlike hope.

“I am considering it.”

“Good.” And she flipped back down on him.

After a brief lull Aro spoke again.

“Tell me, darling, how is your Akkadian these days?”

***

_Two hours later in Volterra…_   
  


A **_ping_** echoed through the high vaulted chamber of the Castle as daylight shone through the tall stained glass Gothic windows, and in which all of the guard had gathered for a game of poker before retiring themselves to their own agendas for the Christmas holidays, just like Master Aro had done, plus the gathering had the ideal conditions to get the first live account from Jane, Jacques, Lily, Emil, Felix and Demetri (Jane having already presented Caius with the katanas and given a report of the mission to Master Marcus and Master Caius) on how the mission to Japan had gone.

Heidi had been more than surprised when the group had returned without her best friend and their beloved Master.

All of the ones left in the Castle had suffered from a briefly lived panic that something truly disastrous had happened to both Aro and Renata, but the calm demeanour of the rest of the Guard who had gone on the mission to Japan brusquely dissuaded them from their initial morbid fears.

After all, all of them had noticed the steady decline of Master Aro’s appetite (it was not exactly easy to hide if they fed together once a month (between their individual meals outside Volterra) when Heidi brought in the tourists, and could see who everyone chose for their dinner, and the tone of everyone’s eyes between the feasts) and his whimsical nature had taken a turn for the worse as his behaviour had jumped to extremes on more than a couple occasions.

They had all hoped that the visit to Japan would help him deal with whatever ~~(the one hundred year mark of Queen Sulpicia’s death that had now extended to eleven month long mourning, a setback from Master Aro’s decades long recovery from his devastating loss)~~ that had been bothering him for the last few months.

The fact that he had taken Renata with him, an action that was nothing short of completely ordinary, as Renata did accompany him to practically everywhere, always, especially if he needed to leave the safety of the Castle, had some of the more idiotically inclined (like Santiago and Jacques) make catcalls about the two finally having some _alone time_. Some even more idiotically inclined (like Felix) thought they were fu- (Heidi was just going to paraphrase the cretin and say -) _‘friends with benefits’_ which was so far from the truth it was laughable, even if their close companionship might sow some seeds of suspicion in some minds. Heidi knew her friend, and so she was one thousand per cent sure there was nothing going on besides platonic friendship, on both ends.

Renata hadn’t exactly confessed but Heidi had eyes, okay? And she was fairly certain Renata loved him very much. Well, they all did, more or less strongly. But it was the only plausible explanation for why Renata had not left them already. Logically, and Heidi was quite certain of this, with her gift, Renata could pull away from ~~Chelsea’s bonds~~ (the Masters’ Insurance), if she wished it hard enough.

The devil's dozen of them: Heidi, Demetri (on her left), Alec, Felix, Chelsea, Afton, Corin, Santiago, Lily, Emil, Jacques, Jane, and Phillippa (on Heidi’s right) were all sitting at the round table with Phillippa, the fucking poker shark (HOW COULD THE GIRL ROB VAMPIRES OF THEIR MONEY SO EASILY? _And they were **not** letting her win even if they all liked her._ She somehow managed to do it impossibly well on her own merit) having already won two hundred and fifty thousand euros. And it had been only forty minutes.

“…er Aro duelled Sadami for his art collection with the katanas we brought back to Master Caius. And _those blades_ , man, they could take our heads clean off. And that’s _exactly_ what Master Aro did. Sadami didn’t have any choice but to concede his defeat…”

Heidi picked up her Blackberry from the table.

**You have 1 unread message**

“I just got a text from Renata.” That shut up Demetri’s blabbering. As did anything to do with Renata. Had the fool no idea Renata _despised_ him with a burning passion? Just like Aro despised cursing?

Heidi could _feel_ how everyone’s interest piqued up.

“She says Master Aro and herself had arrived in Seattle safely. Despite the four more swans that were eaten up by the commercial airplane’s engines.”

There was chortling all around.

 ** _Ping_**. Another message appeared on the screen.

“ _And_ because they were in need of a car, Master sent Renata to retrieve one from the company’s HQ.”

The sniggering died down at their collective wish for her to continue as another _**ping**_ sounded a second later.

She looked to their faces before continuing.

“Renata says there was only one car left because none of the humans had wanted to reserve it for the holidays.”

Heidi was building up suspense, but how could she not?

_**Ping**._

Now, seeing this text, Heidi adopted Renata’s voice, to build the effect: _“Master Aro could not hide his immense surprise when he saw the blood red_ _Maserati Quattroporte that awaited him._ ”

The faint chortling had quieted down and a pregnant silence had fallen over the room. Another _**ping**_.

She regarded the faces of her brethren. And continued in Renata’s voice: _“He almost cursed.”_

They sucked in sharp breaths from shock.

With good reason. Master Aro _never_ cursed. Those few someones who sometimes claimed they had heard him use a curse word were quickly dubbed Liars, as the truly authentic occasions were so rare that _a Swearing Aro_ had practically become a myth by now.

Another _**ping**_ and she had to hold in her giggle.

_Oh, boy._

_“This is a friendly warning to whoever decided it would be a fun idea to fuck with him and order a company car with the licence plate number_...”

A pin could drop and deafen the room. The silence was that quiet.

_**Ping**. _

Heidi covered her mouth with her hand for a moment and lifted her eyes to the expectant faces: _“666-MRV.”_

There was dead silence for a second before shocked gasps, snickers and boisterous laughter could be heard all around the table.

The chortling was immediately cut off by another _**ping**_.

_“Brace yourself because Master is very interested to learn who his Secret Santa… or Santas are. Love, Renata.”_

The phone clicked on the table in the quiet room as Heidi set it down on the obsidian volcanic glass surface.

Heidi knew, as she had witnessed many an execution, that, while vampires had pale skin, it was more than possible for them to go even paler **_or_** greener because Felix looked positively _ill_.

Oh, this was going to get ugly, when Master returned home.

_And Heidi was so looking forward to it._

“You never considered the **_inevitability_** that Aro will find out?” Jane said in her angelic childlike voice. “Moron.”

Dread was spreading through the high vaulted room as another deafening _**ping**_ echoed on the walls and the high arches.

_“P.S. I feel like I should add that we got pulled over by a Very Daring Officer Of The Law. And he was very… amused to see THE Mr Volturi himself in the vehicle. Merry Christmas. XOXO”_

“You're dead, big guy.” Alec said between snickers as he clapped Felix’s shoulder.

The rest just looked relieved they had nothing to do with this height of stupidity, except Felix.

 _Felix_ looked as if his immortal existence was effectively over.

And, perhaps, it was. _Because_ _one could never know, when Master Aro got involved._

***

_Aro, I hear you have opted to further prolong your absence from the Castle._

_Take as long as you wish, dear brother._

_Marcus and I have not missed, nor needed your flamboyant presence for the past three weeks and will continue to do so._

_Do forward my and Marcus’ regards to Carlisle. It has been too long._

**_Will do, brother mine._ **

**_When you burn down the Castle, do have it fixed by the time of my return._ **

**_I will give you a 24 h warning, when the time comes._ **

**_;)_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Practically no Bella in this one. But don't worry, she will wake up in the next one. 
> 
>   
> _Cos'era questa volta? La tua regina morta? Tua sorella mor(ta)- (Italian)_ – What was it this time? Your dead queen? Your dead sister-
> 
>  _Basta! (Italian)_ – Enough!
> 
>  _Carissima. (Italian)_ – Dearest.
> 
>  _Mi dispiace, bambina. (Italian)_ – I am sorry, child.
> 
>  _Ti prometto. (Italian)_ – I promise.
> 
>  _Stregone Benefico, infatti. (Italian)_ – ‘The Good Vampire’, indeed.
> 
>   
> (The same for this chapter: Feel free to correct any of the Italian bits, if you’re Italian or speak Italian fluently and know how to translate this properly.)
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	10. Driving Home For Christmas: Part II

Bella’s eyes suddenly snapped open, the transition between sleep and alertness instantaneous.

It was a very peculiar sensation.

Usually the shift was more gradual, but she could tell there was nothing, no sound or movement, that had woken her from the sweetest and most peaceful sleep she’d had for ages. Not even the Four Season’s mattress had made her feel this rested and rejuvenated.

But there was something wrong.

She needed a few seconds to figure out what was bothering her, until the answer came to her as easy as breathing.

The room was completely dark, she looked to the alarm clock and it read exactly 07:00 a.m. But what was downright strange was the fact that the room should be completely dark because the sun would rise only around eight o’clock, consequently leaving her bedroom window pitch black, and thus there wasn't a possibility for the window to permit any light to shine through it.

What made her aware of the wrongness of the situation was the fact that she could easily see everything in colour despite the lack of light. What should be clad in darkness or grey tones at best, instead was ivory, beige and cream. She could see her ruined sea green sweater she’d damaged by her unfortunate fall down the stairs, or the pink pillows on the light blue sofa bed by the door.

 _Aro was such a fucking liar_. What had he done to her?

Not that she was complaining. This was _beyond cool_. Her vision had been twenty-twenty before, but she felt as if it was even sharper now, not counting the her being able to see in the dark stuff. Bella had a hunch that she would be able to see for miles and every last one of them crystal clearly.

She thought back to last night and momentarily recalled her failed search for her painkillers which ended on Aro’s lap and with his teeth in her neck.

Bella felt heat rise to her cheeks and a shiver of pleasure run down her spine as she remembered how _good_ it’d felt.

Then she remembered the reasons he’d given for revealing their secret to her.

And his request about ‘sleeping on his offer’.

Her right hand flew to her face and pressed over her mouth.

_**Isabella, would you like to become a vampire?** _

Did he ** _really_** mean it? She was ninety three per cent sure she had not dreamt it.

 _Why_ would he want her to be like them? Okay, okay. He’d explained, kind of. But. _This was crazy?_

Aro would want her answer soon, wouldn’t he?

Yet a better question was – _did she want to be a vampire?_

They’d told her about these ‘gifts’ they had and a little about the sunlight. Oh, and how their venom could apparently heal injuries and make people be able to see in the dark _(sooo cool!)_.

But what else was there?

Well, they had red eyes. Check.

Their red eyes looked disturbing, a bit, but at the same time were the most beautiful things she’d ever seen.

And they were fast, like, she hadn’t even seen Renata move; she’d just disappeared from one place and appeared in another.

Oh, and let’s not forget Aro’s _fireworks_. _What else could he do?_

She wanted to find out everything before she ~~decided on becom~~ -, okay she should stop lying to herself, she already knew she was going to say ‘yes’.

Bella’d started to pick at the splint but froze as a startling thought entered her mind.

_Did she really have a choice?_

Aro’d asked, but what really was the alternative if she refused (not that she planned to refuse either way, ~~they~~ _vampires_ were _amazing_ , who wouldn’t jump for the chance to be like them?) his offer?

Would they just let her go free, what with everything she now knew? _Not likely._

_Bella didn’t want to die._

**_Those humans who know about us or have deep suspicions about our kind tend to suffer untimely deaths._ **

Then there was that. If Aro could be believed, of course, then her little accident could be just the first in a row of many others until that final fatal one. 

_Bella didn’t want to die._

She shivered.

**_You are most welcome to join us._ **

He’d known even then, hadn’t he? _Join them_ , indeed. Looked as if Bella’d found the answer to the question she hadn’t wanted to find out, hadn’t she?

She just needed a little bit more time to process everything.

Bella looked to her splinted arm and flexed her fingers. There wasn’t the faintest of aches left. She tried rotating the arm as much as she could with the thing still on but came to the same conclusion. Then she pinched her shoulder. Yep, she could to feel pain again without problem.

Well… If it had truly healed overnight, as promised by Aro, _let’s get this ugly thing off_.

Bella needed scissors.

She got up from the bed in one fluid move and went to the en-suite bathroom, where she’d spied a pair in one of the drawers yesterday.

Bella made quick work of cutting the less stiff part of the splint open and taking it off her arm. Her skin was completely healed, the stitches gone, only faint traces of lighter skin were visible, just like the crescent imprints of Aro’s teeth.

And the bathroom too should be pitch black but at the same time it wasn’t.

This was so freaky.

She returned to the bedroom and opened her suitcase.

There really wasn’t much to choose from, as she had had to travel light. Her batwing sweater was destroyed. The hoody Bella’d had on all of Tuesday was an option but after the two flights and spending all those hours waiting in SFO Airport had made it too wrinkly.

The green hoody did not look casually messy. It looked… trashy. It needed to have a meeting with the washing machine, pronto.

If they indeed wanted to drag her to their friends' house, there was no way she was going to wear that.

That left… the dreaded knit baby pink turtleneck sweater Renée had gifted her for Christmas as a ‘cute’ and practical gift for the dank weather of Forks and she didn’t have the heart to leave Renée’s parting gift behind for her mom to find stuffed in the back of Bella's closet.

Maybe it was for the best. The sweater would cover Aro’s bite marks. And hopefully prevent any unwanted comments. _Fuck_ , was she truly considering going with them into a vampires’ den? What if they would want to eat her? But wouldn’t it would be awful to eat their friend’s friend? Right? _Right?_ Plus, she had this inexplicable but unshakeable feeling Aro and Renata would not allow anybody (else) to eat her.

The day before yesterday she was dreading meeting Charlie again.

Today she was dreading walking into a house full of vampires. Surely she must have fallen down some rabbit hole somewhere, mustn’t she? She’d just hit her head so hard she couldn’t even place the moment it’d happened.

But returning to the dreaded piece of garment - Bella had worn it _once_ , to evaluate the level of mortification she would have to face if she ever, for whatever unfortunate reason, was put into a situation where she had to wear it, and had found that it was very comfortable, long sleeved, warm, and looked unexpectedly good on her.

However, it had one major flaw. It made her look some three years younger. And she was not exaggerating here. She looked about fourteen years old in it. Nobody would be able to tell she was in fact seventeen.

But if needs must.

The fate of her white jeans had not been much kinder than that of the bat sweater. They had dark grey stripes on them from the bookshop stairs and even a smear or two of her dried blood on them. They, contrary to her hoody, needed to have a lovely date with bleach.

If not the trash.

_The alternative, however._

There was no easy way to say this so she should just surrender to her inevitable fate. They were her baggy dark blue overalls with large pockets in front and back to ~~hide~~ rest her hands in. She’d worn them a couple times in Phoenix but they were just one of those clothes that looked great but somehow were never taken out of the closet. So she’d decided to take them along, as they were relatively new and didn’t weigh much. She dearly hoped the combination of the pink disaster jumper and the blue overalls won’t set her age back even further. She did not want to look like a twelve year old.

Bella gathered her clothing items for the day and went back to take a shower and go through her morning routine.

She dearly hoped that there was some food in this house. The last thing she’d eaten was the breakfast at the Four Seasons _yesterday morning_ , and she was _famished_.

Bella had just started her shower, when she heard the sound of Christmas music playing somewhere in the house.

When she finally returned to the bedroom and saw herself in the tall mirror opposite the door to the hall, she could only confirm her worst fears. She looked like her fourteen year old self again.

Nevertheless, there was nothing to be done about that.

Bella left the room and stepped into the hall and followed the music to the spacious living room. The candles were still burning, making the dim orange glow reflect on, _well_ , basically all of everything in the room. It was like nothing she’d ever seen before.

The world had become beautiful overnight. _It was like nothing she’d ever **experienced** before. _

She stopped in the portal between the hall and the living room and leaned against the frame to look at the two vampires that were holding onto each other in a very close embrace, their positions and fluid moves skittering on the edge of indecent, their gloved hands lightly touching each other’s backs, heads, shoulders… it was obvious Aro was leading, as he was easily turning and twirling Renata with ease, his hands slipping to Renata’s waist and head, pressing her against him, pushing her away, only to pull her in again to the beat of the music. Their sinuous movements coordinated, the motions almost hypnotic, their quick but perfect steps utterly soundless.

_They looked incredibly hot together._

It was the best dancing she’d ever seen. _As was rapidly becoming the norm with these two._

The song ended and Michael Bublé’s ‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town’ was up next. They parted, obviously having noticed her watching their performance.

“That was the _hottest_ _bachata_ I have ever seen!” Bella declared in excitement. “Despite you dancing it to ‘Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree’.”

Aro smirked and Renata laughed, the sound clear and bell-like. “Thank you, Bella!”

“I’m sure Uncle can teach you.” Renata bumped her shoulder to Aro’s and smirked up at him.

“Oh. You’d- you’d do that?” Bella asked and felt a blush rise to her face (she was sick and tired of blushing around both of them, why did she have to do it? _All of the time_ ) and Aro tilted his head a little to the right, sliding his gaze from her head to her feet as if weighing her up.

“Certainly. It would be my pleasure, Isabella.”

“Um. I’m not the best dancer, you know, despite my former ballerina status.”

“Oh, I’m sure you will be surprised by just how much easier you will find it now.”

Bella narrowed her eyes in slits. Was that an allusion to whatever he’d done to her last night?

While Bella was busy observing them, both Aro and Renata were standing still with vaguely puzzled expressions on their faces themselves.

“Do you mean the _now_ as in _after whatever you did to me_ last night? And don’t try denying it. My arm healed just as you said it would, but… ”

“Master, why does Bella look so young? She definitely looked older yesterday.”

Aro was still looking perplexedly at her but his face had gained a slightly discombobulated look.

“I’m positive the venom should not have this kind of effect on her.”

“ _Hello_ , _I’m still here_. I asked you about side effects and you said there were none!”

“Angel. I told you there were no _harmful_ side effects, did I not?”

“Well… yeah, but…”

“You might experience some minor enhancements to your senses, such as a better equilibrium, for one,” he half-teased.

“Is that why I can see in the dark now?” Bella asked and saw how his eyes gained an excited gleam to them.

“That… is very interesting. The changes are never the same, you see.” _Now_ he tells her. Jerk.

“Night vision, you said?” Aro glided over to her, lightly framed her face with his hands and peered into her eyes with his own crimson ones, as if looking to see if there was a visible change to them as well.

“Freaked me out at first, until I realised what was going on.”

“It’s quite peculiar, I have to agree, Bella, but Master, that still does not explain why she looks the twins' age.”

She could practically see Aro try to come up with an answer to explain how it could have happened.

“You _are_ seventeen, angel, are you not?” And now he was thinking she’d lied to him. “It is hard for us to tell people’s ages.”

Bella took mercy on them and decided to put them out of their misery.

“It’s the clothes. They, like, make me look three years younger. This is how I always look in them, but I couldn’t exactly take my entire wardrobe with me, could I?”

Evidently, now that she’d told them they could see for themselves that the clothes were the ones at fault here.

“What are your thoughts, Renata?”

“If what you mean is if I approve taking a fourteen year old hostage with us to meet the Cullens, then… Of course I do.”

Mischief danced in Aro’s red eyes at her assessment.

“You look lovely, Bella. Carlisle and his family will simply _adore_ you.”

“If you say so.” Bella was much more sceptical.

“Bella, there is some food on the kitchen table for you, if you‘re interested.” Renata informed her.

“Oh. My. God. I’m starving. Thank you so much, Renata!” Bella turned around and practically ran to the kitchen, where she stopped dead in her tracks, once she registered the kind of food that was set on the table.

A party pack of M&Ms, black olives in a glass jar, a coconut, a water bottle, an energy drink in a can, a leek, a pack of once frozen shrimp that had long since defrozen in the room temperature. Corn grains. A jar of honey. Lemons. Lots of lemons. Gingerbread hearts, the soft kind with chocolate cover and apricot jelly filling and clementines. Lots of clementines.

Well…

Considering Bella did not have any food here with her herself…

And judging from the collection, it was apparent that Renata did not know a thing about what humans ate for breakfast. Or at any other time of the day, really.

Well... It could have certainly been worse.

Bella did not hear them step into the kitchen after her, but she could _sense_ them. _This is going to be fun getting used to._

“ _Well_.”

“What is it Bella? Is there something wrong?” Renata seemed to sense herself that something was off.

“Um… no. No, no. Everything’s _fine_. Thanks, Renata.” Bella turned her head back and gave Renata a quick, grateful smile.

Renata looked relieved but Aro, the bastard, was trying not to smirk - trying being the operative word here.

Bella slowly approached the table and took the pack of thawed shrimp and proceeded to stuff it in the freezer of the fridge. She did not have the heart to put it in the trash when Renata could see, and such a thing would be awfully rude of Bella, wouldn’t it?

She eyed the many cupboards of the ridiculously spacious kitchen and started opening them, looking for… ~~plates~~ , bowls, ~~shredders~~ , ~~a great collection of spatulas ( _why_ )~~, mugs, ~~straws~~ , ~~candles~~ , spoons, ~~forks and knives~~ , ~~matches~~ , ~~tea~~ , coffee, ~~cinnamon~~ , sugar ~~and other spices~~ , which she retrieved and then poured some water in a kettle and set the water to boil.

Bella grabbed the coffee, sugar, the coffee mug, spoon, one large glass bowl and another smaller one and went to the kitchen island, above which an abundance of copper pans and pots were hanging. She set everything on it and snatched the chocolate M&Ms and the cookies, and started to wash and fill the large bowl with clementines.

“What do vampires even eat? Is it just blood or do you eat normal food too?” she had to ask. Bella was practically dying from curiosity, as much as from her hunger. But judging from Renata’s choice of breakfast for her, she did not harbour any huge expectations about the latter.

“Just blood.” Aro answered but seemed to hesitate for a bit, before he said, “…Usually.”

“Usually?”

“Yes… There are some of our kind who like to… _indulge_ in the more fleshy parts of-”

“Master Aro!” Renata cried out, appalled. God, Bella got a kick out of every time Renata called Aro ‘Master’. It was that hilarious.

But Renata seemed to be acting like those parents who were downright shocked when someone started to discuss inappropriate topics in the hearing range of their ‘innocent’ children.

“I apologise, angel. This is something we usually avoid acknowledging, more so in polite company.” Aro said frankly, without any ambiguous double or triple meanings hidden in his speech.

Oh… _they were embarrassed_.

“However, you aske-” Aro said, but Renata swiftly talked over him.

“ _Bella!_ To answer your question, Bella, the only thing we consume is blood. It is the normal food for us. Human food on the other hand… doesn’t appeal to us in the slightest.” Sounded like a very diplomatic way of saying that vampires found human food repulsive. Kudos to Renata.

“What about other drinks?” Bella leaned against the kitchen island and studied Aro. “I’ve seen you drink wine before.”

“Alcohol is an option. It has a very distinctive taste - _not bad_ , just different, but it would take several litres of very strong alcohol at once to make us even a little tipsy. It is more of a temporary option for keeping one’s mind off the worst of the thirst if we have not had a meal for long. Or we do it for sentimental reasons or as an indulgence for the sake of diversity. …Blood could get so humdrum after a while…” Aro’s gaze turned unseeing, while Renata looked to him with muted worry and a flicker of sadness.

Bella looked to Aro and then to Renata and back when it slowly clicked to her what was wrong.

The realisation made her so sad.

And her brain provided her with the memory of yesterday morning when he’d sipped the wine from his glass and how disappointed Renata had been by him.

The kettle started to whistle and she quickly turned and walked back to the stove with her mug and poured the boiling water over the coffee grounds.

“Got it. No coffee for you then.” She gave them a sunny smile, to change the subject. At least somewhat.

She walked back to the island with her steaming drink and easily jumped up on one of the high chairs that were placed by it. Then she looked to Aro and Renata with a lifted eyebrow, while she pulled the sugar container and the bowl of fruit, plus the other empty bowl and the candy bag and gingerbread hearts closer to herself, tore the packaging of them open and emptied the divinely smelling contents into the smaller bowl.

They got the hint and following her example sat down at the opposite side of the island.

Bella tore the peel of one of the clementines off and started to eat the soft orange flesh. _Finally._ It was very sweet. She loved them. Any kind of tropical or orange citrus fruit, actually.

Bella looked to the pair and noticed they seemed to be genuinely entertained by her breakfast.

It was so _strange_ sitting in the dark kitchen as if it was a completely ordinary thing.

_Anyhow._

It was freaking _awesome!_

“What else should I know **_if_** I took you up on your offer, Aro?” Bella challenged.

“ ** _When_** you take me up on my offer, angel.” Aro smirked in response.

Suddenly one of the clementines from the bowl slowly drifted up, as if untethered by gravity, and flew into Aro’s expectant hand and he started to roll it on the marble surface of the island.

WHAT

Nope. Bella was not going to address this magic trick of his. Her owl like eyes did it for her anyway.

Renata looked resigned and a tiny bit envious.

“Alright. Vampire 101.” Aro smirked and Renata put her head on top of her folded arms and looked up to Aro with entertainment and warmth in her ruby red eyes.

Bella smiled widely and bit into a delicious heart.

“To change a human into a vampire, the human needs to be bitten by one of us,” when a crease appeared on her forehead and her chewing stopped, Aro clarified, “properly bitten.”

“On average, it takes three full days for the transformation to run its course. It may vary, a few hours here or there, but generally it takes about seventy-two hours.”

Okay. So far, so…clear.

“The change itself is not pleasant.” Bella stopped chewing on the candy for a second before continuing. Her heightened sense of understatements rearing its head.

“How unpleasant are we talking about here?” Bella asked as she peeled another mandarin.

“Hmm. If a vampire is very young or unskilled, when they want to make a companion for themselves, they would just bite the human and curse that unlucky soul for three days of excruciating burning in the deepest pits of hell.” Next to Aro, Renata’s light frame shuddered. Bella swallowed, heavily, and looked at them with huge eyes.

“But fear not, angel!” Aro exclaimed, which caused her to almost spill her coffee all over the counter.

“I have had a lot of practice over the years. You will not feel a thing.” His lips stretched into a smug smile, “ _Just like yesterday._ ” And she felt herself blush. Even the tips of her ears were burning. _Bastard._

Aro watched her mischievously for a few beats but soon his expression turned serious again and he continued on with _the lesson_.

“Every atom in a human’s body realigns in a new, superior design. The body becomes a construct of marble appearance-wise, gains the tensile strength and density equated to diamonds but instead of being fragile as diamonds are, our bodies become robust.”

“We are born anew into the most deadly things that walk the earth.” Aro said with his foreign accent and it sounded like something straight out of a horror movie. Bella could feel goosebumps rise on her skin.

“We retain the basic appearance of our past human selves but the change makes us into a near ideal version of the imperfect human bodies we were born with _. Cosmetically_. It’s why we are so _nice-looking_ , as you said.”

An M&M went down the wrong pipe and she had to cough a few times to expel the candy from her windpipe.

Aro let her finish in peace before continuing. _The considerate bastard._

“On the inside, the whole digestive system changes completely to ensure the blood we consume is processed properly so that our bodies could be thoroughly saturated with it, for a while.”

Bella had forgotten her breakfast completely, her left arm frozen in the candy bowl.

She consciously drew out another heart and bit into it.

Plus, she’d totally forgotten her coffee. Good thing it was still hot.

“We are hundreds of times stronger than humans, especially newborns, a term for those vampires in the first year of their turning,” _say what now?_

“…Faster than humans, our every sense is enhanced supremely, in comparison to humans. The little things you are experiencing now are just a small taste of how it will be, after.”

“Our voice changes. People you knew before would not recognise it and connect it back to your human self.” Renata threw in her two cents.

“Our irises turn red permanently, gradually darkening in proportion to our hunger.”

“So, pitch black would mean-”

“An indication of immense hunger.” Renata finished.

_Did Aro have the contacts in that airport, or were they his real eyes, then?_

“That… is not quite right, darling.” Renata turned her head to the left and lifted her eyes up to him askingly.

“Simply black irises would only indicate a considerable need for sustenance. Nothing overly alarming.” Renata’s brows furrowed.

“When we experience _immense hunger_ , as you said, darling, our eyeballs turn black fully. We are not exactly a pretty sight anymore. I suppose you have not had the pleasure of meeting anyone in this kind of condition yet.” Aro calmly explained.

Renata seemed to be very disturbed by this new piece of information.

“How long would one of your kind have to go without blood for this to happen?” Bella asked.

“Nine months, give or take a few weeks.” Renata bit her lip and turned away from him.

_…Nine months?_

“Not to worry, angel, young vampires, as you will be, have to consume blood once or twice a week. It is no problem. When vampires get older, we need to feed every two to three weeks, to not experience discomfort.”

“And the older we are the less blood we need.” Aro continued as he played with his clementine by making it rotate in spirals in the air in front of him.

“And… how much is that?” Bella could sense that they did not want to tell her, despite no visible change to them. Bella took a sip of her coffee and took another mandarin-

“Hmm… One to two humans per meal,” -which slipped from her fingers, hit the island’s surface and rolled over the edge. It did not fall, however. It flew back up and slowly spun in front of her eyes. Bella swallowed and slowly grasped the levitating orange ball.

One human every three weeks. Roughly seventeen humans per year, in the best case, the worst case closer to fifty. But Bella had a feeling they were softening the numbers.

Bella raised her eyes and just… stared at them. They looked the same as before. The same amazing people as before.

“And… how old are you?” Bella cautiously asked. ~~Perhaps it was a sensitive topic for vampires too?~~

“I was born in 1702. And changed in 1728. Which makes me three hundred and two years old.” Renata volunteered.

**_Three hundred and two_ **

“Three hundred and two?” Bella asked in a weak voice.

Which meant four thousand six hundred and ninety-two humans as dinner, at the least.

Bella did not know what to make of this. The implications were staggering, and her brain just refused to process the whole thing.

Bella dragged her eyes from Renata and looked into Aro’s. Bella could see he was conflicted between telling the truth and speculating how well it would be received by her.

“Bella, you don’t want to know Aro’s age, trust me.”

“Oh? And why is that?” She asked, intrigued, despite the morbid facts about vampires.

“Are you like, one thousand?” Bella jokingly guessed as she looked at Aro.

Renata snorted, “As if! It makes my brain hurt every time I’m reminded of it.” Renata said while lightly bumping her forehead to the marble surface of the island.

“Renata, I have never told you my age. You just assumed the worst.”

“You taught me _Old Akkadian_ , so you must be at least four thousand.”

“…Four _…thousand?_ ” _Come again? Did she hear right? Four fucking thousand?! Four fucking-  
_

“Renata. In all honesty, I do not remember.” Renata seemed a little stunned. And Bella’s brain had taken a leave of absence, it felt like.

“You do not remember? _How could you not remember?_ We remember everything!”

“That is also not quite true, darling.”

At least Bella was not the only one experiencing shocking news here this morning.

“You are young, still. But after the two thousand year mark some things would start to slip from our memories. Nothing major, just the more inane things. After four thousand year mark, you would not be able to recall people or places, or names that bare no significance to you. After six thous- ”

“ ** _Stop!_** _Master…_ please stop _._ ”

“ _You are six thousand years old?_ ” This must be shock. _It had to be._ Or she was just having one hellawa dream. No. A nightmare. That’s what this must be.

 _A night terror_.

Aro frowned.

“As I said, I do not remember very clearly. I just go with ‘five, give or take a few, millennia’, most of the time. _But_ , if you want to be more precise, then _yes_ , I would say it is a little over six thousand.”

Renata had her eyes shut tightly together and her hands pressed over her ears, as if she wanted to unhear what her ‘Master’ had revealed.

Bella just. Bella just. _Bella just_ … She looked down and lifted her mug to her lips and took a very long sip of her coffee.

Her crush was six thousand years old. **_Over_** _. Six. Thousand. Years. Old_.

_What was **wrong** with her?_

She’d died and gone to hell, hadn’t she?

Thankfully, the number was so abstract it was not hard to just. Brush the whole thing… _off_.

For the time being.

“Well. You don’t look a day over three thousand, Aro.” Bella weakly offered.

“Thank you, angel.”

“Okay. Okay. Let’s just… What else should I know?”

“Usually, when a human is turned into one of us, their previous life wanes from their memory almost completely. Only the most fundamental memories and feelings remain.”

“So… I would not remember my parents or... or you guys?”

“No, nothing as drastic. You would remember them, dimly, but the emotional ties to them could disappear, or they could not. It is different for each person.”

Aro must have sensed her disquiet because he continued.

“You would definitely remember Renata and myself. I would think they would be the clearest memories you would take with you in your new life, angel.” He said with smiling eyes.

“What else… As I told you earlier, we are very hard to kill. We are practically immortal. The only natural enemies we have are werewolves, or the Children of the Moon, as we call them.”

“Werewolves are real too?” _Just a minor reality flip here. Happens every day…_

“They are. They transform into giant wolf like abominations once a month on a full moon. They are as fast and as strong as vampires, or even more so, and their bite is poisonous to us.” Bella startled as the clementine that was slowly twirling in front of Aro spontaneously combusted. There wasn’t even smoke left to be seen in the air.

“But don’t worry, angel.” Aro said with an evil, _deranged_ smile. “They were hunted out to the brink of extinction a hundred years ago. In the last century their numbers have diminished even further. Werewolves are extremely rare. Some vampires are not even aware they exist.” He was scaring her. Probably unintentionally, but it was what it was. Bella had a feeling he had made sure of this _brink of extinction_ , personally. _Why?_ Were werewolves really so awful?

“We are immortal, but there are laws we must abide by.” Aro switched to another topic. _Thank God._

“What are they? And what happens if you break them?” _Anything to change the subject_.

“Well. They are fairly simple. The first one is: _Do not expose vampires to humans_.”

“The consequences to breaking this law would be death for the humans who were made aware of us and the death to the vampire or vampires which were responsible for the exposure.” Aro smirked as he watched her swallow heavily.

“Relax, angel. Nobody really cares about one human who does not have any evidence or agency to spread this information to the general human population, and be taken seriously.” He reassured her.

“Even if you told anyone, people would be more inclined to believe you schizophrenic than telling the truth.” Bella was listening with wide eyes.

“However. _You **cannot** tell anyone_, angel. It is very important. No one can know. Your parents can never know. Your human friends can never know.” _As if she had any._

“It is as much for their safety as it is for yours and ours.”

“I. I won’t. I won’t tell anyone.” Bella promised. She didn’t want her parents to die because of this, because of _her_.

Aro considered her for a moment but seemed to accept her answer.

“Good.”

She exhaled.

“Aro?” she quietly asked.

“Yes, angel?”

Bella slowly drew her eyes back to his angelic face.

“I am never going to see my parents again, am I?” Her voice sounded so… young. Even to her ears.

And Aro… he just looked back to her calmly, head slightly tilted to the side. No remorse or compassion, or anything besides vague interest in his gemlike eyes.

_But no joy or malice either._

“You can see your father one last time before we leave for Italy.” He finally said.

“…See?”

“See.”

In the most literal sense, then.

Bella lowered her eyes to the still somewhat warm coffee mug that was clasped in her hands and slowly nodded.

She would not cry, she would not cry. She would not cry.

Bella had already said goodbye to Renée, hadn’t she? Sort of. She never thought it would be the last time she saw her mom though.

And poor Charlie. He’s going to blame himself, isn’t he?

Maybe it was better she did not meet him again before disappearing from his life forever.

It hurt.

It hurt so much.

But at the same time… it didn’t hurt _enough_.

Bella exhaled one last shaky breath and took the last gingerbread heart from the bowl of sweets and bit half of it clean off.

The orange apricot filling oozed from its middle.

Aro apparently took this as his cue to go on with his explanatory lecture of Vampire laws.

“The second law: _Do not create Newborn armies_.”

“How does that even work?” Bella asked with a frown and finished off the last gingerbread heart.

“Occasionally, a vampire would, for whatever reason, develop a mind-set in which such an action as making and controlling dozens of new, strong, _and_ _confused_ vampires would seem acceptable to them. It is not. It could be the cause of the breaking of the first law and could have disastrous consequences for our species. Hence it is prohibited.” Bella started to fish out all the blue M&Ms and pop them in her mouth.

“The third: _Do not create immortal children._ If this law is broken, everyone involved would be executed, without exception.”

“Why would anyone wan… Okay, I think I get why… But-”

“It is, perhaps, the ultimate taboo in our world.” Renata said.

“Indeed. The children, preteens, do not have the maturity to understand many concepts, but most importantly, they do not have the restraint to control their bloodlust. They could slaughter a small community in one night and not understand what it was they did wrong.”

Chills ran down Bella’s spine.

“It would take _a very long time_ for them to have that mental leap.” Aro added.

“Besides, the poor things would be forever locked in their child bodies. Incredibly adorable but… an extremely pitiful existence.” Renata concluded somberly with Aro nodding along to her words.

Then his expression brightened.

“The fourth: _Do not kill the Volturi secretaries_.”

Bella started to laugh. Were they for real? Renata and Aro were almost equally amused.

“You have secretaries? _Human_ secretaries?”

“Yes, we do. But, as of late, too many have… _died too prematurely_ by… the family members’ …hands. Something had to be done.”

“We have never changed any of them but…” Aro stopped and seemed to seriously consider something as seconds ticked by. “Our current secretary. _Signorina Camilli_. She has proven to be exceptional at what she does. _There is something about her_ … I will offer to change her, when we get back to Italy.”

“ _Fai sul serio_ , _Padrone?!_ ” Renata cried, overjoyed.

“ _Lo sono_.” And suddenly Aro was crushed in what looked to be a very painful hug by Renata, who had wrapped herself around him like an octopus.

“ _Grazie! Grazie! Grazie!_ ” Renata chanted in his neck.

“ _Lasciami andare, ragazza!_ ” Aro yelled. “ _Renata!_ ”

Renata drew back and put a kiss on both his cheeks, “Thank you, Master.”

“ _Le donne_ ….” Aro rolled his eyes theatrically and made a show of straightening his wrinkled clothes.

It was very clear they loved each other. Their entire relationship was infectious. It was enchanting to witness… Bella caught herself smiling at their endearing behaviou-

Hold on.

_Hold on._

_Just wait-_

“Wait a minute... These are _your rules_? Your laws? Which everyone has to follow?” Bella asked with sudden comprehension.

“They are. My brothers, Marcus, Caius, and I are the current reigning kings of our world.”

 _Okay_ , her six thousand year old vampire crush was also a king.

Had Bella… actually hit her head on those stairs and were currently in a vivid coma? She felt like some brain damage could definitely explain the present conversation.

“Most of the time, breaking any of these laws would lead to an execution.”

“But most often the cause of death for vampires is, well, stupidity.”

“ _Stupidity?_ ”

“I suppose humans are not that different in this regard.”

“Huh.”

Only about half of sweets and fruit were left. At least she wasn’t hungry anymore. Nevertheless, she started to pick out all the red M&Ms from the bowl.

“Can you think of anything else, Renata?”

“Just that we are very flammable. Fire is not our friend. And don’t look at Aro, he’s an exception to many a fundamental vampire law.”

“You flatter me, dearest.”

“Not when it’s true.”

“I’m guessing you’re not Renata’s uncle, are you?”

“Ah, that. No, I am not. She is more of a… bodyguard of mine. But…” he looked to Renata with fondness, “I would not think it far from an appropriate reflection of our relationship.”

“ _Right_ … And you really want me to come with you to visit this Carlisle? Wouldn't it be, I don’t know, weird? He doesn't know me.”

“I’m glad you asked.” Bella was astounded to see what could only be _flames of wickedness_ dancing in his crimson eyes.

“Carlisle is a dear friend of mine, but I have not seen him in person for close to three hundred years. Our friendships last very long, angel, as we experience the flow of time differently than humans do.”

“In all honesty, it has not been that long. However, in the last century, since he has started to build a family for himself here in the States, I dare say we have fallen out of touch, a little bit.”

“Which _irks_ me.” Aro said with a frown. “More than it should.”

“Either way. The time for facing the consequences of his extended silence has finally come for Carlisle, and by extension, his _lovely_ _family_.”

“What Master Aro is politely trying to say is that we want to fuck with Carlisle and the rest of the Cullens a bit-”

“Renata!” Aro chided, scandalised. Bella started to laugh. They were funny. Her earlier observation was still holding true. _They were fucking funny_.

“- _and_ they’ve been asking for it for a while now. _In my humble opinion_ , of course.” Renata winked.

“ _They have, indeed_ , dearest.” Aro shot his companion an impish look.

A quiet ping sounded from the living room. Something she would not have been able to pick up yesterday. Aro left for two seconds and then returned in his seat with his phone in hand.

“Excellent news from Demetri.” Bella saw Renata grimace, for a moment, before her expression cleared.

“He says Alice, Edward and Jasper have left the peninsula, for Seattle, most likely.”

His phone pinged again.

“But he assures that Carlisle, his wife, and his two youngest are currently staying put in the same location in Forks.”

Aro typed a quick text back, “I’ve asked him to inform me when they reach Port Angeles and once again, when they approach Forks.”

“This is a truly excellent turn of events! We will have some time to catch up with Carlisle without their presence!” Aro happily exclaimed.

“When are we leaving, Master?”

“Hmm… Let’s see. It is eight twenty-nine a.m. How about we depart in an hour, darlings?” Aro suggested.

“That way we will have more than enough time for Renata and me to get changed and for us to wrap the gifts for Carlisle and his wife, no?”

***

Aro, Bella and Renata stepped through the glass door of the lodge. He locked the door and slid the keys to the house in his coat pocket while Renata went to retrieve the car from the dark grey detached barn style garage off to the right from the front entrance with Esme’s gift in one hand (which consisted of two of the aforementioned Edo period vases. It was not exactly hard to part with a few of them, but he hoped Carlisle’s wife will at least be able to appreciate their true value).

During the night the snow cover had thickened and due to the low temperature, had not melted come morning. Faint tracks from Renata’s nightly trip to Port Angeles through the lovely, dark and deep Olympic wood roads could be seen still, but they had gained a few centimetres of snow cover since her return in the wee hours. The snow here was ankle deep and his wine red leather oxford dress shoes were fully submerged in it.

His angel, on the other hand, having an idea she was moving to an area rich in precipitation, had brought along flat lace-up winter boots. How thoughtful.

She’d surprised him again this morning. If he had not seen her yesterday and at that Fated airport and had not known she was seventeen he would have thought her only a little older than Jane, appearance-wise (he’d made sure when he had gone to his bedroom to make himself presentable for meeting his friend and his coven, while Renata and Bella had moved to the living room to wrap Esme’s present and put a bow on Carlisle’s wine bottle, to slip into Isabella's room and check her passport, just to be absolutely certain).

It was truly baffling.

He knew this could not have been an effect from the venom (he squashed the little voice saying that there was always a first time for everything, ~~especially if Bella was involved~~ ) as nothing similar had happened to the humans on the younger side he’d experimented on before (although, none of them had ever gained _night vision_ , nor had any of Didyme’s victims; _it was most fascinating_ ).

And, as the Cullens themselves were fairly young vampires and the ability to tell human ages had not yet waned, he confessed to being somewhat impatient to see their reactions.

Oh, he had no doubt that Carlisle would catch on fast enough, after all, he was well acquainted with Aro’s particular brand of mischief. However, his initial reaction would still be _oh so worth it_.

Aro was ~~looking forward to~~ counting on some backlash from Carlisle’s lovely family, at their _unforeseen_ visit (hopefully), at who their unforeseen guests were and the crown jewel – his lovely angel who looked utterly _pure_ and _innocent_ (he wondered how long this erroneous assessment would remain in the Cullens’ minds. _He would say until she let one of her f-bombs drop_ ) in her loose blue overalls and the cute pink high neck sweater (even better, they would not be able to spy the marks on her neck) and if Bella could be believed, should, to them, look only a year older than his twins.

They would be oh so appalled by ~~them~~ him.

 **He**. **Could**. **Not**. **Wait**.

However, he hoped, for his dear friend’s sake that they did not do anything exceptionally stupid. He was on holiday, after all. He did not want to _work_.

But he _will_ , if necessity called for it.

A full minute had passed and while his angel was spinning in circles and looking around at the bright, snow clad outdoors in wonder, most likely marvelling at the nature with her improved vision, Renata had driven out of the ~~barn~~ garage and stopped the car beside them.

Isabella had quickly gotten into the back and Aro found himself hesitating for a fraction of a second, before taking the passenger seat in the front. He had wanted to sit closer to the human, an impulse which was nothing short of silly of him. He had wanted to hold her hand again, which was… _ridiculous_. (Nevertheless, he will have plenty opportunity to do this in the next few hours.)

Renata carefully rolled the car through the narrow driveway before picking up speed when she got onto East Beach Road.

They view to the blue lake on his right through the sparse tree line between the road and the water body was almost as beautiful as the one from the lodge’s South-East façade. He could easily see the Olympic Highway on the opposite side of the lake.

It may very well have been the road the gifted Cullen children had taken this morning.

“Aro? Renata? Um… I’ve been meaning to ask you. What exactly does your plan to ‘fuck with the Cullens a bit’ entail?”

“Oh, you ask the best questions, angel.” _This is going to be phenomenal! Yes, it will. It will.  
_

“Nothing sinister, be rest assured, just a little friendly teasing among old friends.” _Carly will just have to deal. What else did he expect would happen, after pulling such a disappearing act?_

“I was thinking something along the lines of… _the completely oblivious innocent human girl who has been lured into a vampire coven’s den by the Very Evil Villain and his Seductive Sidekick-_ ”

“Master! I should be _an Accomplice_ , at the least!” Renata indignantly protested.

“My apologies, darling. _Where was I_ … Oh, yes _._ _The completely oblivious innocent human girl who has been lured into a vampire coven’s den by the Very Evil Villain and his Alluring Accomplice, both of which harbour nefarious future intentions towards the innocent Little Lamb, who the Good Vampires would dearly want to warn and save, from the deepest pits of their morally righteous and bleeding Vegetarian Vampire hearts, but dare not do in fright of provoking the Very Evil, Very Villainous Vampire, thus forfeiting their own immortal existence_.”

“You should have been a poet, Master.” His _Partner In Crime_ flatly noted while the Little Lamb was snickering in the backseat.

Renata made a sharp right turn and Aro saw they were back on the Olympic Highway.

“Hold on. What do you mean by vegetarian vampires? And why ‘The Good Vampires’?”

“Oh, didn’t we say? They fancy themselves vegetarians, Carlisle and his family. They _love_ humans. They do not drink human blood. They feed on wild animals - elk, deer, mountain lions, bears, the occasional badger…”

“ _What?!_ That’s… That’s awful! Those poor, poor baby squirrels and bambis. How _could_ they? Have they no heart, the monsters?” The girl was giving a solid performance of tearing up. _The Cullens won’t know what hit them._

Renata, the darling, stopped the car in a conveniently placed emergency rescue area. It seemed she needed a minute to get her own hysterics under control.

“ _Why, Isabella,_ ” Aro drawled in his best fake scandalised tone of voice _._ “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’re upset that they _feed on animals_ , while it is fine feeding _on humans_?! _Like we do?_ ”

“Um. Well. Yeah? Didn’t you say that’s what vampires are supposed to eat? People?” Bella sounded appropriately confused, the poor dear. However, she wasn’t wrong either way.

“You are completely right, angel. People are our natural diet. _Innocent humans_. Of course, there are always those who choose to go against mainstream…”

Renata had gotten herself ~~mostly~~ under control and they got back on the highway, moving ever closer to Forks.

“I’m confident people eat animals and game all the time. _Why so upset, angel?_ ” He could not keep his smirk at bay, this was fun.

Bella let out a deep sigh. “Most do, you’re right. But. People are such hypocrites. They gush over their fucking pets, all the while being perfectly content with the slaughter of other animals for their barbeque.”

Such an unexpected answer.

“And I don’t think there are many truly innocent people in the world, you know, and not just because of their choice of dinner. I’ve always found the concept ridiculous.”

This was getting interesting, “Why would you think so, Isabella?”

“Being an awful person? Cheating on their spouse? Government officials lying to people? _Journalists_ doing the same? Doctors gaining experience while burying their mistakes? …Wishing for that new heart, which would mean the death of a nameless but nevertheless healthy person? Or simply getting that hot chocolate, when the cocoa beans to make it had been, most probably, collected using child labour? I’m not implying people deserve to _die_ because of any of this, but… _Tell me_ , how is that still being _innocent?_ ”

“How right you are, angel. What about children? Wouldn’t you consider them innocent?”

“Hmm. I _would_. Children should be the most innocent creatures in the world. _In theory_. In practice, though? They can be such cruel, sadistic monsters for no reason at all. I guess they don’t know any better, yet. Does not mean anything to the cat whose tail was cut off, now does it?”

Renata had practically calmed down, but Bella’s words set her off laughing again.

“I… I… _Can’t_ … _Buon Dio_! This is… _gold!_ _Aro_ … ”

He knew Renata had never taken a liking to his-

“Bella… in that case… you are going… to… **_love_ **Jane! _I just know it!_ _Oh_ , this is _brilliant_!”

Aro could sense his angel was discomfited by the mention of dear Jane.

“Your daughter, Aro? What does she have to do with this?”

_Isabella is going to learn of this one way or the other. Best to provide her with undoctored facts._

“I changed Jane and her twin brother Alec in 778 when they were only thirteen years old and the people of their village were just about to burn them alive on stakes because they were _of the devil_. The villagers accused them of practicing witchcraft and as their magic manifested more strongly the older they got… I am sure you can imagine the rest, angel.”

“I. Of course. That’s awful, Aro. But why-”

“They possess very powerful gifts, my children. My son can cut off every sense of multiple individuals simultaneously, doesn’t matter if they are vampire, human, _or otherwise_.”

“Jane, however. Well. Her gift manifested as an illusion of burning, excruciating pain. I fear she quite revels in torturing people from time to time.”

“And listening to their screams, Master. Don’t forget that.” Renata _oh so helpfully_ added.

“We all love our gifts, dearest. They are a part of us. It is perfectly natural to enjoy using them.”

“ _Your daughter likes to torture people?_ ” His angel asked, shaken.

And there it was again, the usual reaction to Jane’s harmless hobby.

“ _Loves_ , Bella. _Loves_ to torture people.” Darling Renata was a menace.

“Um. She sounds… charming?” Isabella remarked weakly.

“Don’t let Renata fool you, angel. Dear Jane is a sweetheart. You will love her, I am certain of it.”

“I guess we will see.”

“And you honestly think the Cullens will try to play along when it seemed like I had no clue? Despite their moral stance on the issue?”

“They would not want to get on my bad side.” Of this he was fully confident.

“Huh. You talk as if you have a good one to speak of in the first place.” _Cheeky little thing._

“Angel, most people fear for their immortal lives if they so much as get a glimpse of me.”

“Really? I don’t get that vibe from you at all.” Aro could only shake his head in amazed astonishment.

“You should. But then again, I’m fairly certain there is something wrong with you, Little Lamb.” _There had to be._ _Normal_ _people_ _did not act like her in the presence of vampires._

“Great. And what would that be, Mr Very Evil Vampire?”

“Humans, in general find vampires frightening on an instinctual level. Granted, they find us attractive as well, but their instincts still try to save them by making them wary of us. This, however, does not seem to apply to you.”

“ _Really?_ ”

“Yes, angel. I have noted numerous occasions in which any other human would have screamed their lungs out and run for their life, but you did not bat an eyelash.”

A Christmas song about driving home for Christmas was quietly playing in the background and he could feel his angel start playing with his hair again. It was such a pleasant feeling. ~~He had to constantly stop himself from purring, it was that enjoyable.~~ _He could spend hours just sitting like this…_

“ _Anyway_. If the Cullens want to have the full human experience, as much as they are capable with the limits vampirism has set on them, who am I to deny them their chosen way of life?”

“Think of it as a pop quiz in “Passing As Human Passably”. After all, the Cullen children love to pose as students in high schools, most of the time.”

“You’re kidding. They go to _high school_? _Aro!_ Willingly? _And repeatedly?_ ”

“They do. I find the notion very amusing, myself.”

“You two lovebirds are not the only ones.” Renata chimed in.

Isabella started to suffer a coughing fit.

“We…” _cough_ , “we a-are,” _cough_ , “ _not_.”

Renata just kept looking ahead on the road with her Evil Smirk **™**.

“Renata, look at what you did.” Lovely Renata was a menace. He had said, but it was true nonetheless.

Aro sighed and continued.

“While Carlisle was turned in his twenty-third year of his human life in 1663, most of his ‘children’ were turned in their late teens. And they look it.”

“Okay, Mr Villain.” His angel smirked as she twirled what felt like some of the hair around the tie in a steep base for the ponytail, so that it fell a little farther from his head. Oh, he had an idea of what she was doing, and if so, he had no complaints. “What else should I know about them before you drag me into their nest?”

“You know about Carlisle already. He was our guest at the Castle in Volterra for twenty years at the beginning of the seventeen hundreds. _He left,_ though. I believe he has found his true calling in being a doctor. A very unorthodox choice of profession for one of our kind, angel. And he has never drunk a drop of human blood, to my knowledge, despite my and the family’s efforts to introduce him to our natural diet. His restraint is truly admirable.”

“And you know about his wife Esme as well. Nor she, nor Carlisle possesses any extraordinary gifts, I’m afraid. I’m not certain about when her turning took place, but she has been a vampire for approximately eighty years.”

They were only twenty-two kilometres out from Forks. Looked as if the last night’s snow clouds had opened above the northern part of the peninsula as the snow here was as thick as back at their temporary ‘home’. It has been a while since he had seen such virgin lands, for it was truly beautiful here, in an untouched, primeval sense. He could almost understand why Carlisle had chosen to move all the way here to this backwater town.

“Then there is his first child, Edward. Carlisle turned him when he was seventeen and dying from the Spanish Influenza in 1918. However, I should warn you that all evidence points to him suffering from depression or at least some kind of mental disorder for the last eighty six years. He is not the most pleasant fellow of the family. And oh, yes. _How could I ever forget_ \- he has a gift of telepathy.”

“ _Another mind reader?_ ” His angel really did not like people messing with her mind. Aro had no doubt it was connected to her innate mental gift. He could practically sense her raised hackles.

“Indeed.” Aro was not ecstatic to have his gift compared to that of the boy’s, but he supposed they did bear a superficial likeness. “However, his gift works differently than mine. He can hear and see only the surface thoughts or memories you are recalling in the moment within a few mile radius. It is a handy gift to have, but has obvious limitations.”

“Alright, but how are we going to pretend if he’ll know what we are doing?”

“Oh, but he won’t. Renata and I have given some thought prior to coming here and have taken a few countermeasures. As for you, angel? I very much doubt he would be able to hear your mind.”

“We should stick to the plan till it’s clear that we are discovered, Bella.” Renata succinctly explained their simple strategy.

“Okay. Got it. Who’s next?”

“Rosalie and Emmett. Both changed by Carlisle, in their late teens or early twenties some seventy years ago. They do not possess any gifts, or at least, if they do, I have no knowledge of it. I suppose they could be gifted, but if it is the case, have chosen to keep it quiet.”

“I have not met them myself, of course, but from what I have seen from the memories of those who have, the girl could be considered as a bit standoffish while her husband is much more open and friendly,” he said, “and you have already heard about Alice.”

“Do you think the seer truly did not see us coming, Master?”

“What other option could there be? I doubt they would have left the rest of the family if they had known we were coming.” _A very unlikely scenario._

“Is it just me, or do you not like Edward and Alice very much for some reason?”

“Mmm. As I have said, I have yet to meet them, but from what I have seen thus far, they have not left the best of impressions on our family.”

His angel was running her hands through his hair, leaving her lovely scent all over it.

_Mmmm…he could not wait for the Cullens to start putting the pieces of the puzzle together._

“Alice has a gift of seeing future events based on decisions made by herself and others, or at least that is how I have come to believe her gift works.”

“Their current actions point to us having succeeded in ‘flying under her radar’. Which is better than we had hoped for.”

_Just how large a part of it was their diversion tactic of having Isabella invite them to her house at Sherriffs Hideaway opposed to making her aware of the perilous possibility of someone influencing her choices by seeing and meddling with her future?_

“The last one of the family is Jasper. Unlike the rest of Carlisle’s family, Jasper and Alice were changed by others and joined the coven later on. Both were changed in their late teens, but whilst Alice was turned some eighty years ago, Jasper became a vampire during the American Civil War.”

“His gift is empathy. He can fell and even influence emotions. I believe it will be so much more difficult to keep up the act once he returns. ”

“In other words, our con will be short lived when he gets back.” Isabella deduced.

“Perhaps short, _but brilliant_. Besides, it will be at least an hour before their return. Plenty of time to prank Carlisle.”

“It is going to be so much fun to see how fast they will figure out that we are _having them on_.”

“And Isabella, you should not worry about accidentally showing our hand.” He informed as she secured the hair so that it would not get free from the knot of the upgraded ponytail. “Consider it a game. I wager they would not be able to pretend flawlessly and will slip up by saying _or doing_ something incriminating way before they realise what is going on.”

“Aro! Good Heavens, this is going to be fantastic! Oh, and Bella. Don’t be taken by surprise by their golden eyes. I hear it’s a thing for animal drinkers, for some unfathomable reason. I have not seen anyone with golden eyes before myself, but I have no doubt they look outstanding.”

“They do, darling.”

“I wonder why they left, Master.”

“Perhaps they went there to buy a Christmas tree?” They… _would_ do such a thing, wouldn’t they. How positively nauseating. Hopefully their taste was better than that of the Port Angeles’ hospital staff and the tree will not bear resemblance to that gaudy neon blue atrocity.

Renata let out a snort, “I wouldn’t be surprised if your theory turned out to be not so farfetched, Bella.”

Only ten kilometres left until they reached the border of Forks.

“I was thinking. And…”

“What is it, angel?”

“Why did the Cullens move to the rainiest, dampest and darkest place in the country? Don’t they know how to make themselves all un-shiny?”

Her question made Aro pause.

“That is a very good question, angel.”

“I mean. Didn’t you say Carlisle lived with you for twenty years? Didn’t you teach him?”

“I… did. Teach him. I am confident he knows how.” _How intriguing._

“Wouldn’t he have taught his family too?” Isabella’s puzzlement was very understandable for it was mirrored by his own.

“It is indeed an intriguing question you have posed. What are your thoughts, Renata?”

“Perhaps not all of them possess the skill?”

“Our own little Christmas mystery to be solved!”

Renata exhaled a tired, heavy sigh. “Of course, Master.”

***

They had finally breached the area of Forks and driven past the sign ‘THE CITY OF FORKS WELCOMES YOU’.

Why Americans chose to title villages with the population of three thousand one hundred and twenty people as ‘cities’ escaped him.

The ~~city~~ _~~village?~~_ town looked so much better clad in snow, which masked its usual dreary state he had seen in Miss Young’s memories.

“Keep on following the main street all the way through the town. There will be a nondescript driveway on the right a short ways after an almost invisible green sign indicating a turn to ‘Mansfield Road’. The Cullen residence is at the very end of it.”

“Yes, Master.” Darling Renata said as she sped through the only traffic signal in town at the red light.

“We should stop talking in a minute. Vampire hearing is exceptional. It wouldn’t do to spoil the surprise after all the effort, now would it?”

Soon enough Renata took a right turn to David Mansfield Road.

Aro could hear faint sounds from the house, and _steps_ , until-

_“Do you hear the car that’s approaching the house? They shouldn’t be back yet.”_

He had missed his friend’s voice.

 _“It’s a V8 engine, but it’s definitely not the Cadillac the others left in earlier. I would bet it is a Maserati.”_ A soprano voice said. _And how right Carlisle’s daughter was._

 _“There is a human in the car.”_ Emmett Cullen.

 _“Perhaps someone got lost and took a wrong turn?”_ And this must be Carlisle’s lovely wife.

 _“ **Or** this might be the mystery guest Alice could not get a vision of.”_ Carlisle’s daughter elatedly suggested. How delightful! _Aro liked her already._

Only one hundred metres left until they reached the house.

_“Did Alice mention anything to you before she left?”_

“ _No. She said nothing about anyone showing up.”_

_“I don’t know.”_

They slowly finished the remaining distance and stopped in front of a quaint, off-white, three-level house, its design dominated by glass and clean lines. Someone had put work into making a modern twist on the original project of the house. He supposed the end result was quite pleasing to the eye.

They all got out of the car. He could hear Isabella’s heart starting to beat faster.

Aro took hold of her right hand and led her up the front porch to the wide oak door, on which a Christmas wreath was quietly hanging, Renata by his right side, and pressed the doorbell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They have finally reached Forks! There will be Cullens in the next one. I promise. 
> 
> _Fai sul serio, Padrone?! (Italian)_ \- Are you serious, Master?!
> 
>  _Lo sono. (Italian)_ \- I am.
> 
>  _Grazie! Grazie! Grazie! (Italian)_ \- Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
> 
>  _Lasciami andare, ragazza! (Italian)_ \- Release me, woman!
> 
>  _Le donne… (Italian)_ \- Women...
> 
>  _Buon Dio! (Italian)_ \- Sweet Jesus!
> 
> (Feel free to correct any of the Italian bits, if you’re Italian or speak Italian fluently and know how to translate this properly.)
> 
>   
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	11. You brought all of this upon yourself

_09:55 a.m., Thursday, December 23, 2004_

Carlisle Cullen was standing on the balcony of his study, his elbows resting on the glass railing and looking down at the Bogachiel River which run forty meters from the rear façade of the house. The first snow this winter had fallen the previous night and by the looks of it, the townspeople of Forks will have a white Christmas this year.

As well as his family.

They had moved to Forks a year ago from Alberta so this kind of view should not captivate him so much, but Forks had always felt like home to him. More so than any other place he’d ever lived in. 

Carlisle knew that none other of his family shared this sentiment, as they had their own favourite places they would have been much more content to live in, permanently, but it was not possible, if after six or seven years humans eventually caught on to the fact that they had not aged a day.

He knew that the fault of their moving so bloody often laid primarily with him. If he chose to become a doctor in a hospital for the duration of their stay in one area, there was no option for him to, say, switch hospitals in the same city. The risk of running into his old colleagues was off the charts, thus the frequent moving around the country _or countries_.

To be perfectly honest, Carlisle was starting to get the feeling of budding premonition, nothing as concrete as Alice’s visions, but more of something oppressing and inevitable that awaited him after a few more decades of switching homes. Again. For the thirtieth time.

He knew he could not go on like this indefinitely.

He could always become a permanent student like his ‘children’ and they could stay in one area for longer, but it still did not solve the problem.

And he loved his job.

Another thing Carlisle was loathe to admit, while viewing the spectacular view of the river and the high trees from the balcony in the sunlight that shone from the rare blue sky for Forks, was the monotony of the dark and gloomy places they chose to take up residence in due to the sparking effect of their skin.

In truth, Carlisle was sick and tired of this obstacle limiting their options and he… missed the sun.

Once, when Edward had been a vampire for twenty years (five years after his return to Esme and him after the previous five were spent feeding off of criminals) and which Carlisle had mistakenly though an appropriate time for his son to have gained a bit more maturity and gotten used to living his life as a vampire, Carlisle had offered to teach Edward how to not shine in sunlight.

After all, he had taught Esme while Edward had been gone. Carlisle would say that it had been more difficult for Esme to grasp the concept than it had been for Carlisle himself. (Aro had been an amazing teacher. Carlisle wagered it could have been so because Aro had seen the inner workings of Carlisle’s mind and, thus, it was that much easier to make him understand.)

Nevertheless, Esme had succeeded in achieving the state of _Unsparkling_ after short of two years. Perhaps it could have also been attributed to her very young age as a vampire, but he lacked data to confirm his theory.

Edward, however.

Carlisle had been certain that hearing his thoughts as he explained the intricacies of the art (because it was an art, he had no doubt about it) of ‘Unsparking’ would make it so much easier for his son.

Edward had been very interested, at first. Surprised Carlisle had taken so long to offer or even mention such a thing could be possible (Carlisle had opted to not mention this earlier because of Edward’s struggle with his gift, he had been waiting for the right time when his son had gotten used to his telepathy, the constant bloodlust, and as he’d said, gotten older and gained much needed maturity).

As years passed and he came to meet new vampires of various real and apparent ages, he could not but start to ponder if Aro had not been right all along.

His old friend had said to him once, while drinking their twenty-fourth bottle of wine of that one night in 1711 and Aro had been on the verge of slurring his words (way past tipsy, he’d never seen a vampire drunk before, hadn’t thought it possible, but it had been the closest he’d ever come, before _or_ after): _My… dear friend, one hundred years for vampires are… equivalent to one year for humans… in terms of gaining mental… and emotional maturity. For… most of our kind. It is…one of the reasons… why we do not allow… immortal children. Not only because… of the insurmountable disservice done to them… by their sires… forever frozen in such underdeveloped bodies... For most… children. Below the age of ten… it would take… at least half a millennia for them to… to understand. It is… a kindness to release them from such… torment... I would know, Carly._

Carlisle had been slightly tipsy, _Aro_ had been _drunk_ , so Carlisle had been reluctant to fully believe his friends broken speech.

But when Edward had gotten the first glimpse of Carlisle’s memory of Aro explaining the first basic steps, Edward had stubbornly halted Carlisle’s efforts and categorically refused to learn anything that had originated from ‘ _a soulless monster such as one of the Volturi kings_ ’.

To say that Carlisle had been shocked to the core of his eternal soul would be saying it kindly.

He could not fathom where Edward had gone so wrong in his beliefs about their kind.

Especially considering his gift that allowed him to hear the minds of other vampires.

And to speak of the kings in such a way was… not exactly treason, but uncomfortably close to it.

He had never glimpsed such animosity towards his Italian ~~acquaintances~~ friends from Edward. The only plausible explanation Carlisle could think of was Edward’s newly acquired perspective of the lives of human blood drinkers.

Carlisle knew Edward’s Christian upbringing did not make it any easier for him to accept what he had become (and done while away from Carlisle and Esme), but to think vampires soulless? Even the Volturi?

Carlisle had tried talking some sense into him after Edward had had some time to cool down.

However, to no avail.

Carlisle could only hope but was deeply convinced that even sixty years later, Edward’s erroneous views had not changed. Despite all the evidence that contradicted Edward’s flawed mind-set on the question of _vampire souls_.

It made Carlisle _sad_.

Perhaps it was because his first son had not found his match yet.

Perhaps he would change his mind then. _Carlisle could only hope._

But Edward seemed so uninterested in anyone.

The bottom line was - none of the family besides Esme and himself knew how to ‘Unsparkle’ (at least that is what he believed).

He decided he would offer to teach them (as he should have a very long time ago) but Edward being Edward and hearing all their unguarded thoughts was a problem. It would strain their peaceful life as he had no doubt there would be many a tantrum like that explosive one, years ago, if anyone wanted to learn.

 _Still_.

He **would** offer them anyway. It was the right thing to do, Edward’s stubbornness be damned. (And he wanted to move to a warmer and sunnier place. _The Bahamas, perhaps?_ )

Carlisle swore to himself to ask the rest of his coven after the holidays. Let them have the last Christmas before whatever happens happened.

He made a promise to himself he would not be swayed on the matter.

Honestly, the longer he delved into the subject while Edward was not here to eavesdrop, the more unpleasantly disappointed _in himself_ Carlisle found himself to be.

_What had taken him so long?_

Was there even an excuse?

But he had not let himself think of this for… decades.

_Why? Why now? Why not sooner?_

Carlisle thought the rest of ‘the children’ should be mature enough by now. He thought he had made a mistake all those years ago, but perhaps it had just been ~~rotten~~ bad luck it had been Edward he’d made the offer to first. If it had been Rose… well. He will find out soon enough.

_Either way, Edward needed to grow up._

And Carlisle needed a change of scenery. Else that shadow of The Oppressing Cloud Of Doom would settle over his head.

Nevertheless, he was glad they had come back to Forks. It was their first Christmas here after leaving Canada.

And the Christmas Cheer had taken hold of every one of his family.

Alice more so than anyone else.

A few days ago she had sworn up and down that someone was going to visit. She had gotten a sudden flash of intent but something had gone wrong and that future avenue had disappeared without a trace in less than a second.

Alice had been certain that someone had wanted to visit them, or at least had thought about it, but had changed their mind and crossed out this decision from their plans.

But Alice being Alice (of course after making sure everyone was on board with it) had called all of their friends asking if they had been the ones who had wanted to visit and tried to convince them to come to Forks for Christmas.

First, she had called Tanya and her sisters but they assured Alice that they had not planned any such thing as they had plans made already and were in Norway at the moment.

Then she had called Peter and Charlotte (although Carlisle couldn’t understand why she had even bothered. Peter was… a complicated fellow with opinions about Alice. He had never been outright hostile to her (to Carlisle’s knowledge), likely because he respected Jasper too much to get into a fight with her but Carlisle thought it had been a close thing a few times). Unfortunately, it had been Peter and not Charlotte who had answered the phone. And unsurprisingly, Alice’s queries were totally rebuffed and her invitation refused with the words ‘ _We’ll take a rain check, sweet cheeks, thanks for askin’_ ’.

That had left only Eleazar and Carmen as potential guests. Tanya had told Alice that they had decided to stay in Denali as opposed to joining the sisters in Norway, so it was them who Alice called next.

And they were in much the same denial about having wanted to visit as the rest of their shared friends. However. They were not opposed to the idea of visiting their family for Christmas. _And had agreed._

Hence Alice, Edward and Jasper had gone to Seattle to pick them up from the airport as well as… to buy a Christmas tree. Carlisle had been bewildered for a second until he just… gave up on trying to apply common sense to _Alice_ and _shopping_ and the fact that they had a full private forest (not to mention the thousands of acres of woods covering their hunting ground) of perfectly ideal spruce trees to choose from.

Carlisle was looking forward to catching up with Carmen and Eleazar. Perhaps he’d consult them about his plan of teaching the rest of the family the art of ‘Unsparkling’.

After all, he had not seen them for close to thirty years. Not that it had been such a long time, they were vampires after all. Time was a fairly relative concept for them.

His ears picked up the sound of a vehicle turning onto the three hundred meter road that led to their house from the highway.

Alice, Jasper and Edward had left only three hours earlier and the plane had been scheduled to land only at nine a.m. They should not be back yet.

Carlisle took quick steps to the door of the balcony that lead to the living area where Rose and Emmett were sitting to the right from the door on the loveseat placed by the windows and were busy honouring _the_ _holy tradition_ of French kissing underneath the mistletoe that was _conveniently_ hanging over their heads ( _and whose brilliant idea had it been this time?)._

His loud (purposely) entrance made them pull apart with smirking, unapologetic faces.

“Do you hear the car that’s approaching the house? They shouldn’t be back yet.”

Rose turned her head in the direction of the front door (and the driveway), a crease working its way across her brow.

“It’s a V8 engine, but it’s definitely not the Cadillac the others left in earlier. I would bet it is a Maserati.”

Now, this was interesting. Nobody in Forks drove such cars apart from his family. The car had about two hundred meters left until it reached the house and he tried to pick any sound from the vehicle beside the motor but… hold on.

“There is a human in the car.” Emmett offered. And yes, he was correct. One heartbeat.

“Perhaps someone got lost and took a wrong turn?” Esme had apparently heard the same thing and had joined them from her studio in the attic.

“Or this might be the mystery guest Alice could not get a vision of.” Rose elatedly suggested.

They could not hear anything else from the car.

_One hundred metres._

“Did Alice mention anything to you both before she left?” Carlisle asked, but didn’t really believe they would actually know anything more than Carlisle himself already did ( _did not_ ).

“No. She said nothing about anyone showing up.” Rose denied.

Emmett just shook his head. “I don’t know.”

The car came to a stop in front of the house and Carlisle could hear that heartbeat picking up speed slightly but not by much, he would say the person was a little anxious.

What they did not, however, expect was the opening of _three_ doors near simultaneously. All their heads shot up. There was light shuffling, the car doors shutting closed and three pairs of footsteps approaching the front steps of the door.

The sound of the doorbell echoed in the silent house.

Carlisle straightened and slowly went to open the door to the human and two vampires that were waiting on the other side of the door.

He slowly pulled the door open and he felt his brain… stop.

Because.

Never had he envisioned the sight that met him.

Not in a million years.

For the **Who** that was standing a mere metre from him on the other side of the threshold was none other than-

“… _Aro?_ ”

His old friend looked… different, yet the same.

Of course he looked different.

It was not the eighteenth century anymore, for God’s sake.

What was Aro _doing_ here? Why had he _come_ here? _What did he_ _want_? Had Carlisle _done_ something to warrant a visit from his dear old friend?

_Why had he brought a human with him?_

How did Aro know where to find him? And why had Alice not warned them?

How- Why-? When-.

 _How_ was Aro here? _On his doorstep…_ _On this unremarkable winter’s day…_

He knew he must have been staring at Aro for a couple or ~~twenty~~ _thirty_ seconds longer than strictly necessary because a slow smile started to spread on Aro’s face.

“ _Hello, Carlisle._ ” And Aro’s genuinely warm smile warped into the Cheshire Cat’s manic grin at seeing the surprise that must have been stamped on Carlisle’s face, or was it his sudden impeccable likeness to a goldfish? “ _I have missed you, old friend._ ”

And for three full seconds, Carlisle was reminded of his old friend’s love for causing mischief that, more often than not, bordered on irrefutable insanity. Carlisle was reminded of all the mad things he had witnessed in his twenty year long stay with the Volturi that Aro had caused directly or _seemingly indirectly_ , although Carlisle had always harboured the suspicion that any happenstance less than transparently traceable back to its origin had been a part of some grand scheme of Aro’s rather than being the unfortunate fruit of circumstance.

“…And I you.” Carlisle felt an answering smile creep up on his face in response to Aro’s words. And Carlisle _had_ missed him. Aro was _unlike anyone_ he’d ever met in his long life. “I must say, this is quite the… _unexpected_ _surprise_ , old friend.”

And that manic grin turned borderline psychotic.

“Fabulous! Then we have succeeded in doing the improbable, have we not, darlings?” Carlisle was momentarily reminded of the two other figures that flanked Aro.

And for some inexplicable reason his old friend kept looking at Carlisle expectantly.

But Carlisle’s gaze fell to the other vampire who he had never seen before.

She was a head shorter than Aro, had dark brown wavy hair, a black coat and red high heel boots and was the loveliest vampire he had ever seen in his life. He noticed that she wore a pair of contacts that made her eyes look the colour of dark cherries.

And she was holding a huge gift wrapped in red paper with a black bow on it.

Carlisle could not help but smile at her beaming face.

“I’m Renata. Aro’s niece.” Renata cheerfully said.

He’d heard of Renata. It was a rumour that had started to circulate around the mid-eighteen hundreds, that a female vampire ( _not_ his late wife) was always accompanying Aro if he left the castle or was simply meeting guests or anyone really, who came to the Volturi with their problems, and had a gift of emitting a force field that rendered any physical attacks void. But-

His brain had stopped processing data for a quarter of a second until he caught up. _…Niece?_

Niece.

Alright.

“Of course.” Carlisle gave her a polite smile. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Renata.” And his eyes slid past the still expectant face of Aro to the other figure which was… clearly human and looking at him with genuine interest ( _and a splash of hope in her chocolate eyes_ ).

A young girl about sixteen or seventeen years old, if Carlisle would have to guess. A pretty brunette wearing a dark jacket and loose, dark blue trousers underneath… and pink winter boots. And who’s right hand was clasped in Aro’s gloved one.

Carlisle could not believe that Aro would- Aro wouldn’t.

_Would he?_

No. _No no no no no no._ _Please no._

“This is Isabella.” Carlisle saw the human girl (whose scent was very appealing, however, he could momentarily sense that the girl was practically drenched in Aro’s own sweet honeysuckle-vanilla scent, and he thanked the stars he had developed immunity to the smell of any human blood long ago) give Aro a quick glance before focusing on Carlisle.

Aro would not bring… No.

“Hello. It’s very nice to meet you, Dr Cullen.” The girl replied in a soft, and _very young_ voice.

No.

_Not again._

He hoped Aro had a sane explanation for this…

Carlisle looked back to Aro who had deep black contacts in his eyes himself and a wine bottle with a red bow on it in his other hand.

And they all looked expectantly to Carlisle as seconds slowly ~~ticked~~ dragged by while they all just stood there.

By the door.

Until his dreadful manners finally registered.

Good Heavens.

“Oh! _Where are my manners!_ Please! Please, come in.”

Carlisle stepped back and opened the door wider to let them in.

Renata stepped into the house first and then Aro pulled the girl inside after him.

“Carlisle.” His head turned to Aro and Carlisle was presented with the dark bottle, which he carefully took from Aro’s outstretched hand.

“Thank you.” It was red wine, _1998 Chateau Margaux, Bordeaux, France_ , not Aro’s usual choice, but- ,

“A little… _sentimental something_ , if you will, to remind you of… _Italy_.” Aro grinned showing his sharp teeth.

_Carlisle was wary of anything that reminded him of **Aro** and **Italy**. And **wine**._

He brushed the uneasy feeling aside and gave them all a welcoming smile-

“Come. Let me introduce you to my wife and children.”

Carlisle led them through the hallway which was all white walls decorated with Esme’s sketches of various historical and contemporary architectural masterpieces from all over the world. Carlisle led them into the living room where Esme, Emmett and Rose were standing huddled together and trying _(and failing)_ to suppress their nerves at meeting Aro.

Carlisle had, of course, told everyone about the Volturi and his time living with them a few centuries back. The younger ones were clearly intimidated by the rulers of the vampire world, but did not have a very clear picture of the Italian vampires regardless.

Jasper, on the other hand, had been more than a bit disturbed when Carlisle revealed that he ~~had been~~ was good friends with the kings, especially with the one who was their leader. Jasper had heard more about the Volturi prior to joining their family and had found it a reason for concern, for a while. Carlisle could only imagine that the word that travelled around the nomads and the occasional small coven were almost all horror stories that painted the Volturi (especially Aro and Caius) in a very chilling light.

However, he could very well imagine that all his recounts of the Volturi kings (as they had been approached by the Guard members several times when Demetri or other members of the Guard happened to be nearby and were not too lazy to track them down), _of Aro_ , could not prepare them for the sheer presence his old friend carried with himself, _always_.

Any vampire would _somehow_ , inexplicably and instinctually realise that Aro was… _very old_. And thus very, very, very dangerous. If they got a slightly queasy feeling at seeing Jasper’s scars, it was nothing, _nothing_ , compared to Aro’s presence. For even though Aro did not have any scars to be seen where his skin was not clad by clothing, his whole aura screamed primeval in such a way that the faint hairs on their bodies stood on end and shivers ran down their spines. 

Carlisle was unsure if his friend ever fully comprehended the effect he had on someone who was not accustomed to him. Theoretically, he should know, what with his terrifying gift, but Carlisle had a fleeting suspicion that while Aro did recognise his effect on others, he still did not entirely catch on to just _how frightening_ he came across most of the time.

And this was when he was not even trying.

“And you _must_ be Carlisle’s lovely family!” Aro exclaimed in an ecstatic voice.

Carlisle could not help but smile.

As if the almost alien aura his friend radiated was not enough, his manic personality coupled with his dramatic panache made most vampires taste the bitter flavour of madness in the air all around him.

Anyway, if one overlooked his age, the dramatics and his quirky personality, Aro was an amazing vampire to know or call their friend. _Or **exactly** because of all these qualities._

Carlisle would know.

In the present moment, however-

His poor wife looked ready to faint.

His youngest children on the other hand…

Emmett looked unnerved. Something Carlisle had never witnessed before. For all intents and purposes, Emmett appeared two times bigger than Aro, and about ten times stronger.

But, _somehow_ , it was clear to all of them, Emmett included, clear as the cyan blue sky outside, that Aro could _incapacitate_ Emmett in seconds. Or even before Emmett so much as laid a finger on him.

His youngest son looked like he had finally, irrevocably realised that vampires were _immortal_ , and given how long Aro had been around… the things he must have seen and lived through, the countless vampires he must have killed, _given his latest profession_ , not to even mention the implications of his diet…

When Carlisle had stayed with the Volturi almost three hundred years ago he had very quickly taught himself to just… not let himself think about it. Any of it. It was much easier to live among his kind that way. They were vampires. Carlisle’s personal moral compass did not mean much to others and as most everyone in the vampire world were human drinkers, it would have meant a very lonely existence back then if he could not empathise with other vampires that chose to not go against their instincts, and Carlisle had steeled himself and made himself to just… _suck it_ _up_ and accept the harsh truths of the universe.

But if he had to guess, he would wager Aro had killed over half a million people in his _five (give or take a few) millennia_ years on this earth. It was such an abstract number that even his superior vampire faculties could not fully grasp the concept of.

And now Aro had brought along a human to Carlisle’s home. _Whatever for?_ (All right, Carlisle wasn’t an idiot. The girl was probably a convenient _little something_ to be devoured by Aro when the mood struck or when he started to feel _a little_ _peckish_.)

Rosalie, while visibly shaken, was distraught perhaps by another tiny little fact Carlisle had never deemed important enough or felt necessary to share with his family. Namely, that to vampire superior sight, Aro’s looks were exceptional, more so than the average vampire’s and more so than Heidi’s or even Rosalie’s. The difference was in that his friend did not care one bit about his angelic appearance, no more than Carlisle cared about his own attractive features. However, when most humans would see his friend, they would either liken him to angels, or they would have trouble focusing on or even remembering his face altogether because… it was too symmetrical, too perfect.

Rosalie was not the most beautiful vampire in the house anymore.

 _It must be hard for her_ , Carlisle thought with a streak of genuine humour.

Carlisle went to stand between Esme and his daughter.

“This is Esme, my lovely wife.” Carlisle introduced.

Aro had come closer to them, Renata and… Isabella staying further back but still following him closely.

Aro reached out to Esme with a gloved hand and as Esme extended hers, clasped it and kissed the air above the back of her palm.

“It is so very lovely to finally meet you, dear. I had wondered for a while now if I would ever see you in person, and… now I have.” Aro gave her one of his smiles that he probably thought charming but was more foreboding than anything else.

Dear God. This was… not a very good development.

“I’m very pleased to meet you too.” His wife said, overwhelmed.

Carlisle had known full well, somewhere at the far back of his mind that not going to visit Aro for this long would have consequences, eventually. But he never actually wanted to believe that his time would eventually run short ( _so suddenly and without due warning_ ) and that _this day_ would finally come when _Aro_ _himself_ showed up on his doorstep.

Carlisle could practically see the ‘ _you brought all of this on yourself, Carly_ ’ in Aro’s smile.

This was such an unexpected visit.

 ** _Why_** had Alice not warned them?

Why had she not seen anything?

Or _had_ she, and had chosen to make herself scarce? Alice wouldn’t do something like that, would she?

No.

No, no, no.

This had _Aro_ written all over it.

His friend released Esme’s hand and moved with a too unnatural slide to Rosalie.

 _How did the human not find it weird?_ Emmett by Rose’s side tensed but kept himself still as Aro took Rosalie’s hand and brought it to his lips and, similarly to Esme’s, kissed the air above it.

“You _must_ be Rosalie.” Aro said with a pleasant drawl. “You are far more beautiful than Demetri ever remembered, dear.” Rose looked a little spooked but gave his friend one of her rare sweet smiles, nonetheless. Looked like flattery really got you everywhere. _God help him._

“Thank you…” Rose started to say but it was clear she did not know how to address Aro in the company of the human, who was looking around the room more than she was keeping track of the introductions.

Aro smiled to her as if knowing all too well why she had left the thanks hanging in the air. But the smile was not malicious, rather it was _entertained_. _Please… no_. _God_.

“You are more than welcome to call me Aro, dear.”

Aro then turned to Emmett who offered his hand first.

“I’m Emmett,” Emmett said with a slight grin.

Aro huffed a laugh. “Aro Volturi,” he clasped Emmett’s hand in a strong grip and they shook for a brief moment but it was clear there were no dreadful demonstrations of superior strength from Emmett.

_Thank the Lord._

Aro spinned around in a blink, too fast for the human not to ask questions, but the girl was looking at the ceiling instead. How… odd. _And very convenient_.

As Aro turned his back to him for the first time, he could now see how his straight hair was tied up in a ponytail, … _had it grown longer?_ And as he got a whiff of air at Aro’s swift movement, he could tell that Aro’s hair was covered in the girl’s lovely scent. _Did he let her **touch** his hai-_

He could sense his family stiffen for a second before relaxing (as much as they were capable), evidently having come to the same conclusion. _What on earth was goin-_

“Let me present to you my lovely niece, Renata.” Aro returned to Renata’s side and had gotten rid of his gloves (Carlisle truly appreciated his friend not using his gift on his family as they would have no choice but to comply, if he really demanded to see into their minds), which were slightly peeking out of his navy coat pocket. And then he went past his guard and slid his bare hand into the human girl’s, entwining their fingers. _What in the seven hell-_

“It is _so_ _very_ _amazing_ to meet you all at last!” Renata said with unfeigned enthusiasm. “Uncle has told me so much about you already! _All good things_ , don’t worry.” Renata winked.

… _Uncle._

Right.

Aro turned to Isabella whose hand he was still holding in his no doubt ice cold one (and Carlisle knew Aro’s skin was even colder than the average vampire’s, most likely attributed to his very old age), but the girl did not seem to be upset _or surprised_ by it in the slightest.

“And this is our new friend, Isabella!” Aro said in a lilting tone and Carlisle could see his friend lightly squeezed her hand.

“I prefer Bella, actually.” The human blushed a little and gave them a timid smile, “You have a very beautiful home, Dr and Mrs Cullen.”

“Thank you, dear. And please, call me Esme.” Esme sweetly offered while tightly clutching to Carlisle’s elbow.

“Indeed, Bella, any friend of Aro’s is a friend of ours so feel free to refer to us by our first names.”

“Oh… Thank you… Carlisle. Aro has told me so much about you all, it is nice to finally put names to faces.” _Has he now_. She looked at them with her wide chocolate eyes and Carlisle could not help but wonder what game Aro was playing this time.

“Before I forget!” Renata stepped forward and put the huge gift into Esme’s hands. “We, Uncle and I, were thinking you would appreciate our Christmas gift and I see it will fit right into your house!”

“ _Oh my!_ Thank you, Renata. You really shouldn’t have.” Esme said as she accepted the huge box from Renata’s arms.

“Nonsense, dear Esme! It is our pleasure!” Aro jovially reassured.

Esme moved with the gift across the room and set the red box on Edward’s closed piano.

“Friends. I’m sure you have travelled a long way. Why don’t we… sit down?” Carlisle led them to the low table in the living room that was placed between the windows and the bookshelf by the wall on their left and surrounded by three leather sofas.

The girl threw an odd look to the furniture but sat down nevertheless (or more exactly, was pulled down by Aro) on the closest sofa to the windows, with Renata sitting down on the other side of the girl.

Emmett and Rose took the sofa to Aro’s right and Carlisle sat down on the remaining one, directly in front of his old friend, just as Esme returned from the kitchen… with scissors.

The girl slid her jacket off behind her just as Aro and Renata put their dark coats over the back of the sofa.

Renata was wearing a white Victorian hourglass corset over a white silk blouse and black skin tight jeans, while Aro had dressed in a white oversized sweater and white pencil trousers. He had never seen his friend this dressed down. It had always been long regal gowns and immaculate silk shirts.

The girl had a rosebud colour sweater on and soft, loose fitting dark blue overalls. Carlisle lifted his gaze and was momentarily shaken by just _how young_ the girl looked. He must have been mistaken in his earlier assumption because Bella looked closer to fourteen than sixteen years old.

Carlisle looked to Aro and his distress must have reflected on his face, because the corner of Aro’s lips turned up by an infinitesimal amount.

The sound of Esme cutting off the wrapping paper minutely diverted his attention.

Carlisle quickly turned back to his surprise guests, “I confess we were not expecting you… Alice…”

“Yes?” Aro asked politely but disinterestedly, all the while almost imperceptibly leaning forward.

“…She had gotten a feeling that someone was going to visit us but had been convinced they’d changed their minds, as she could not… um.” Carlisle’s eyes drifted to Bella.

“Oh, don’t mind me, Carlisle.” Bella said with slightly widened eyes. “Aro has already told me all about your daughter’s astrology hobby, there’s no judgement here. None whatsoever! I think it’s awesome!” On his immediate left, Emmett let out an indecipherable sound, which he effectively smothered behind his palm.

“He… has. I see.” And just what… _other_ lies had Aro been telling the girl about them?

“ _Of course_. I had feared I had bored them to _death_ with my voice, but as it seems, **_someone_ **_had been_ paying attention, after all.” _Aro kissed the girl’s cheek and her_ _heart skipped a beat._

Carlisle could not believe his eyes.

“OH MY GOODNESS! ARE THESE WHAT I THINK THEY ARE?!” Esme cried on the other side of the room.

“Depends on what you think they are, dear Esme.” Aro replied.

“Late seventeen century Edo Period Kakiemon Hampton Court porcelain vases. An almost identical pair can be currently viewed on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.” _Oh, Dear God._ Esme had rushed through her words _in five seconds flat_ in her obvious excitement and as Carlisle cautiously looked back to the girl, there were frown lines on her forehead.

“Then you would be completely correct. These are from my personal colle-” only for the girl _**to interrupt Aro**. _Was the human _suicidal?_ “Oh My God! You let me help you wrap _three hundred plus year old_ , _fragile_ , porcelain vases?! Me! I thought you were kidding! _Are you nuts?_ ”

_Carlisle had seen vampires executed for less._

“Angel. Nothing unfortunate happened to them, did it? Besides, I would think the porcelain is not as fragile as you believe it to be.” Carlisle seriously doubted that. There was that faint undertone of gobbledygook woven into Aro’s words, something he had learned to recognise only after eight years living with the Volturi. And-

_…Angel?_

“You are such a liar, mister. China is china. It breaks. Easily. Have you _any_ idea just how many f- _…ragile_ china cups of my Grandma Marie I have accidentally smashed?” the girl asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Aro was looking at the human with his dark eyes swimming in laughter, “I have not an idea, angel.”

And his friend was still holding onto her hand so he _must_ be lying.

Aro lifted his gaze from Bella’s eyes and looked to Esme, “It is a true joy to see you appreciate the artwork, dear.”

Esme looked from the gift to his friend. “Thank you… Aro. They are beautiful.” Then her eyes moved to Bella and Carlisle could practically see how her eyes widened as she no doubt recalled her previously rushed speech. “Can I offer you anything to… drink? I don’t believe we have… any…” _cough,_ “food… prepared, yet. But I believe we do have… _tea_ … and… um, coffee?” Esme finished uncertainly with a sheepish smile.

A deep silence stretched after Esme’s… kind offer.

Nobody was answering her, but it looked like at least Bella had some manners-

“Oh, I would love a cup of tea! How about you, Renata? Aro?”

“Perhaps something a little stronger for us, hmm?”

Renata’s mood soured momentarily.

“Isn’t it too early to start drinking, Uncle? What will Bella think?” Aro’s guard chidingly asked.

“That it is not anything she has not seen before.” Aro looked to his left at the girl. “Isn’t that right, angel?”

“…Right. I did wonder if you had a problem, Aro, but-”

“Uncle would never admit it, Bella.” Renata said with resigned air.

_Did they really go there?_

And Carlisle was a bit surprised that his friend allowed one of his Guard to speak about him in such a way… Even if Aro was cordial with most every one of his coven, Carlisle knew he disliked disrespect, even if he did not show it, most of the time.

But Renata had not really been disrespectful, had she? More… _disapproving?_

“We have champagne, or wine?” No doubt the bottles gifted to both Esme and Carlisle for their fake birthdays by their colleagues.

“Champagne would be excellent, dear.”

Carlisle paid a look to his left to where Emmett and Rose were sitting and witnessing the, _to them_ , no doubt, hilarious (if a tad dangerous) event that was unfolding in their living room, right in front of their disbelieving eyes.

Unfortunately, it won’t take too much time until they overcame their incredulousness.

“Carlisle? You were saying something about dear Alice? How _is_ your youngest faring? Oh! _Are_ we going to meet the rest of your… children today?” A muffled puff of a cork being pulled out could be heard from the kitchen.

“She’s… quite well, my friend. Alice, Edward and Jasper went to Seattle this morning. They should be back in an hour.”

Esme approached them with a tray that held a teapot, an open bottle of champagne, six glasses and a glass cup for the tea for Bella. She set the bamboo tray on the table between them, sat down and proceeded to pour champagne in the glasses for all of them from the open bottle while Bella helped herself to the tea.

Aro took a glass and so did Renata.

After a few beats, Rose leaned forward and snatched two glasses, one for herself and one for Emmett. Weren’t they seemingly too young to drink alcohol?

 _Carlisle, however, had more pressing concerns to address_.

“They went to welcome a few of our friends and pick them up from airport.” Rose offered as she carefully smelled the drink in her glass.

“Oh?” Aro turned to Rose who was sitting on the adjacent sofa to his right and asked with sincere interest.

“Carmen and Eleazar. Do you know them, Aro?” Rose innocently asked.

“What wonderful news! Why, yes! _Of course_ , Renata and I know them! Eleazar is an old family friend! I have not seen Eleazar and darling Carmen in what feels like long decades… It will be most exciting to meet him again! And his darling wife, too!” Aro was practically swooning and radiating joy all around him.

Carlisle had missed his ecstatic mood changes. _Lord._ It has been _too long_ , hasn’t it? And Carlisle hadn’t even noticed…

“Oh, you will love them, angel!” And Aro squeezed the girl’s hand again. Which he was still holding in his own. Carlisle had never seen Aro touch someone for so long, without gloves on, except Sulpicia, sometimes, before…

“Um… right. Sure, Aro.” Bella looked up at him with unsure, guarded expression on her face.

Carlisle took a glass for himself and proceeded to drink half of it in one go. He had not really indulged in the habit for the last century as there had not been any need really, plenty of blood available, but this visit called for something much ‘ _stronger’_ , indeed. Or was it just Aro’s bad influence at work here?

“Aro, my friend… This is such an… unanticipated visit. _How_ … did you decide to come all the way from Italy… _now_?”

“Actually, we were flying home from Japan and had to have an emergency landing in LA for a couple of tundra swans had damaged the engines of our private jet beyond saving.”

“What!” Bella’s head shot to Aro with what appeared to be genuine concern. “Your plane almost crashed!?”

“It was not as bad as Uncle makes it sound, Bella.” Renata assured the distressed human. “Our family has an excellent pilot. He brought the plane down smoothly even with busted engines.”

“We are completely fine, angel.”

Aro looked back to Carlisle.

“While in LA, I realised that I have not seen you, old friend, for what must be a few years now and we decided to come visit you as we had found ourselves in the country.”

“I see. Well, this is a very pleasant surprise, Aro.” Carlisle gave Aro a small, but nevertheless true smile.

Rose and Emmett, and Esme were slowly sipping the champagne, their eyes darting back and forth between Carlisle and their guests. It seemed the stress had yet to leave them.

Carlisle’s eyes were drawn back to the human girl almost as if by a magnetic force. He couldn’t help himself. It was unlike Aro to do something like this. Was this his punishment for not keeping in closer touch with the Volturi? Was it Carlisle’s fault, however indirect it might be, that Aro had dragged an innocent child into this?

“Bella.” The girls head instantly shot up from her tea cup and her beautiful catlike chocolate eyes focused on him. “Have you known Aro and Renata long?”

“Oh! No, no. Not long at all. I met them only the day before yesterday.” Bella said and watched him intently.

_There was something ab-_

“We met Isabella in San Francisco.” Aro confessed while looking at the girl with an enraptured gaze.

“They kidnapped me from the airport, you see.” _Sorry, what?_

“ _Excuse me?_ ” Slipped out from his lips at her candid confession.

Carlisle was almost sorry he’d asked. _But what else had he expected, really?_

Dead silence was the most prominent thing in the room.

Which was broken by Aro.

“Isabella. We have talked about this. We could not, in good conscience, let you wander off all alone by yourself. _Anything could have happened to you!_ ” In what appeared to be _genuine concern_. Then Aro turned back to Carlisle and his family. “Do not worry, my friends. She will come around. _Eventually._ ” And then Aro turned back to the human girl and smiled one of his manic shark smiles. Carlisle expected screaming to start any second but the girl just scowled at him.

“You’re in luck the Stockholm syndrome seems to have kicked in already, mister.” Aro snorted in his patented regal way, leaned in and kissed the corner of the girl’s mouth. _Which was beyond inappropriate_ and which made her heartbeat escalate and the blood rush to her neck and face and cause her lovely scent to spike in the air. However, it was more prominent than ever that it was accompanied with the flavour of Aro’s unique spicy vanilla scent.

Dear Lord. _What had Aro done to her?_

Renata was quietly giggling. Rose was watching the spectacle with barely suppressed rage, gripping the stem of her wineglass and Carlisle was honestly surprised it hadn’t shattered. Emmett looked as if he did not know what to make of the trio and the situation while Esme had her eyes unblinkingly glued to the lone cloud floating in the clear blue sky that could be seen through the window behind their guests, her features frozen.

Bella apparently sensed the change in the atmosphere in the room and snatched the half-finished glass from Aro’s hand and swallowed the contents in one gulp.

“Angel, are you sure-”

“Don’t tell me children in Italy don’t drink wine since they are like, seven.” Bella shot back.

“Well. You are _not wrong_ …” His friend sighed and took the empty glass out of her hand and set it on the table.

“Where were you travelling to, sweetheart?” Esme asked in her motherly voice, “Aren’t your parents going to worry about you?”

“Oh. Um… I was going to my dad’s for Christmas. And my mom. Well. She already knew I was going to stay with him, so she.. um. Won’t worry. Probably. At least not until Christmas Day.”

“And you will call her. Won’t you, angel? Wish her and her new husband a Merry Christmas. So that she will have no reason to worry, mmm?” Aro brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear and slid his hand around her waist, pulling her into his side, and pressed his lips to the girl’s temple.

“I.” Bella’s eyes became a little misty for a moment. “I will.”

Not the answer Esme was hoping for, surely.

Apparently the girl was not as oblivious to her precarious situation as one could believe from first glance.

The human had spent more than a day in Aro and Renata’s company, after all. She _must have_ seen _something_. What game were they playing at?

“Isn’t your father already wondering where you are, Bella?” Rosalie asked.

“Oh. It was supposed to be a surprise, you see. My coming to see him for Christmas. He is expecting for me to arrive only mid-January.” And wasn’t that just fantastic? But also meant no Amber Alert had been issued for her, yet. _Probably_. He will have to check, _later_. Carlisle could not decide if this was a good or a bad… development. “I agreed to humour these two for a while. …And they wouldn’t take ‘ _no’_ for an answer… so there’s that.” Bella quietly finished, lowered her eyes to her hands and started to pick at the hem of her sleeve.

“I promised to get you home to see your father, did I not, love?”

And they were all just… sitting there, listening to this conversation as if it was completely normal. _But what on earth could ~~they~~ he do…?_

And the girl did not even try to ask them for help.

Why?

Had she already judged them incapable? Did she think they would not even try ( _which, in the end, was the atrocious truth, wasn’t it?_ ), because they were ~~supposedly~~ friends of Aro’s?

Or did she still ~~naively~~ misguidedly hope Aro would let her go?

Because Aro clearly had no intention of letting the girl go. And considering how utterly divine her blood smelled…

Just thinking about the unfortunate fate of this innocent child made Carlisle _feel sick_.

He felt like an accomplice. Just standing by, allowing this to happen.

Doing nothing.

**_But what on earth could he do…?_ **

Once, when Demetri had found them _yet again_ , this time in Baltimore, Carlisle had overheard him speak to Jasper and Emmett about their secretaries. Demetri had given a thoughtless offhand remark about how he was looking forward to the replacement to the last one who had apparently not lived up to his expectations as she had been _too salty_. Jesus Christ.

Thus Carlisle did not harbour any hope that the Volturi had any qualms eating humans who they had known for months. Who _lived_ with them in the Castle.

The girl was doomed.

The only thing they could do for Bella now was be kind to her… for however long ( _or short_ ) time she had left.

“Mhm. You did.” The girl quietly responded.

“And I would never lie to you, angel.” Aro said in a saccharine sweet voice ( _Carlisle could feel cavities forming on his teeth_ ).

“Okay.” It looked like the girl really wanted to believe him, as she looked into Aro’s eyes searchingly, _desperately_ , but even she must know he was being untruthful.

“Way to sound like a serial kidnapper, Uncle. What would Uncle Marcus say?”

“Marcus is a saint, _carissima_. He would forgive me. He always does. _Which reminds me._ ”

_Just like he ‘forgave’ Aro for killing his mate?_

“Caius and Marcus send their regards. They have missed your company as well, dear Carlisle. The Castle is not the same, without you there, anymore.” Aro said while intensely staring into Carlisle’s eyes.

Carlisle coughed.

It sounded too damn much as if Aro wanted him _back there. At the Castle_.

“Yes… _the Castle_. And thank you, my friend. You must give them my regards too.”

“Why, you simply _must_ come visit us! And your lovely family is invited as well!” Aro exclaimed with infectious, childish excitement just as all his present family members froze. Like wax figures.

“We… will, Aro. Of course, we will visit.” Emmett, Rose and Esme turned their heads simultaneously (with inhuman speed) to him, startling the girl and making her jump in her seat a little. _Have they forgotten how to behave?_

There was no way he could blatantly refuse Aro’s invitation while in his presence, _when Aro had made the offer **personally**_ , for Christ’s sake. Had they no idea who was sitting in their living room?! Yes, Aro was Carlisle’s friend but even if there were bonds of friendship between them, he was ~~the~~ a king of the Vampire world, first.

Aro was grinning and Renata was very successfully keeping her glee in check.

“Thank you for inviting us.” Carlisle eventually said.

“Of course, my friend. Everyone will be so pleased to meet you again! Dear Jane had wanted to come along with us, but I feared the journey up here would be too much for her… nerves. You must know how teenagers could get. I have no doubt the twins will be _delighted_ to see you again.”

Thank the Lord he’d at least sent his menace of a daughter home.

A ping sounded behind Aro, and his friend turned around to search his coat, which he had placed on the back of the sofa earlier, for his phone.

“Um… What do you guys do for fun around here?” Bella cautiously asked looking around to all of them. “Aro said you liked hunting badgers-” Emmett let out a bark of laughter while Rose covered her face with her hands and was visibly shaking,” …but I’m not sure he wasn’t messing with me…” Renata looked away from them to the piano, effectively hiding her face from view, and Aro… that bastard was smiling to himself and was _for all intents and purposes_ completely ignoring their conversation for whatever it was he was reading on his phone.

Carlisle put his elbow on the armrest of the sofa, effectively covering and hiding his eyes behind his palm.

“…We do go hunting, occasionally, mostly deer, _not_ … badgers.” Carlisle reluctantly explained, which set Emmett off again.

“We like to go hiking too, when the weather is good.” Emmett added, looking at Bella after his sniggering had died down.

“Oh. That’s something I guess.” The girl quietly remarked.

There was a brief lull in the conversation around the table.

“Um… Excuse me, Mrs Cu- Esme. Can you point me to the restroom, please?” Bella asked as she stood up from the sofa and brushed a stray tear from the corner of her eye.

“Of course, dear. It’s down the hall to the front door and then to the right, at the end of the gallery.” Esme said in a kind voice.

“…Thanks.” Bella softly whispered as she moved past Renata, walked past Esme and disappeared from their view when she stepped into the hallway. Aro helped himself to more champagne as they all listened to Bella’s light steps and her quieting heartbeat as she walked to the front door, down the gallery and opened the door to the washroom, stepped inside and clicked the door shut.

“Aro…”

“Yes, dear Carlisle?” Aro lifted his eyes from his glass and crossed his legs, looking every bit the king that he was, even in his holiday attire. “Is something the matter?”

“ _Is something the matter?_ Are you serious?!” Carlisle whisper shouted. “Why did you kidnap a child and bring her here? Why would you do such a thing?”

“Did we not discuss this ten minutes ago? I seem to recall such conversation taking place. Renata, how about you?”

“I recall it as well, Master.” Renata voiced from Aro’s left.

“I believe it is redundant to repeat ourselves. Isabella is our friend. She is _wonderful_ company.” He smirked behind his glass.

“I can’t believe you, old friend.” Carlisle shook his head.

“There is nothing to be so upset about, Carly. It was Fate Himself who brought her to us. Who am I to refuse such an offering, mmm?” And for a quarter of a second a crazed light flashed in his eyes, the very same which made an appearance every time Aro mentioned _Fate_.

Even though many thought Aro evil, Carlisle had never shared the sentiment. And even if Carlisle, by all means, should start doing so now, given Aro’s current despicable actions, he just… couldn’t. Aro was… _Aro_. And Carlisle _loved_ him, despite all the horrendous things his friend had done ~~(will do)~~. There were so few laws Aro adhered to, and most of them his own.

_Was this how Marcus felt, every hour of every day?_

Carlisle closed his eyes in defeat and let out a heavy sigh. When he opened them a few seconds later, he was met with the disbelieving stares of his family. Hopefully they will let the matter slide, there was nothing they could, _or should_ , do to help the child. It was too late for her.

She belonged to Aro now.

“Where are you staying, friend? I’d love to offer you one of our guest rooms, but I fear there is not enough space for the three of you with Carmen and Eleazar coming here so soon as well.”

“Worry not,” Aro said with a blooming smile, “We have settled ourselves in this quaint lodge house on the shore of Lake Crescent. We have all the space we need.”

“It is such a lovely cabin! And the view is to die for!” Renata gushed. “I confess I am almost tempted to buy it off the owners. I’d love to return there sometime, don’t you agree, Bella?”

“Of course, I do.” Carlisle felt himself still, Esme jumped up in her seat and let out a quiet hiss but thankfully did not leap at the human. Rose and Emmett stilled as well and shot incredulous looks to the girl, as she spoke behind his poor wife.

How could the human have sneaked up on them, unheard?

Aro appeared to be almost proud as the girl rejoined him on the sofa with Renata grinning deviously on Bella’s other side.

“Of all the things for Bella to pick up from you...” Renata whistled. “This is all your doing, Master. Mark my words.”

Carlisle was sure his eyes had widened a bit too much, but he could not help it. His children were watching this like live entertainment and there was no question this was _All Aro’s Fault_. That meddling bastard… he brought havoc everywhere he went.

But Bella was _smirking_ as she lifted her eyes to them. Apparently she had pulled herself together a bit in the brief few minutes she had been gone.

“It’s weird, isn’t it? I had a suspicion they had this clandestine dom-sub thing going on, but they’ve denied it, of course. I guess they don’t want to wake up to the headlines saying _‘Scandal At Valerian Inc.? Owner And Niece Caught In Incestuous Tryst!’_ , now do they?” the girl said curving her fingers to form air quotes.

Carlisle would bet his this year’s _H. Max Schiebel, MD, Award for Surgical Professionalism_ that his incredulousness could be felt all around the table, spreading around the living room, the house, seeping onto the driveway, the woods and pouring down the Bogachiel River.

_Was the child insane?_

There was silence for a beat until Emmett burst into wild laughter with Rose giggling into Emmett’s shoulder, his wife had covered her mouth with her palm, and Renata was shaking, biting her lip and trying not to follow Emmett’s example, while Aro… Aro was looking skyward as if praying for help from Fate, although his lips were twitching.

And the girl had a too innocent smile on her face. Come to think of it, the girl did seem a bit _too_ innocent and too _unaware_ , at times.

It was weird.

The _girl_ was weird. _At times._

_There was something about her-_

“Angel. I have told you before. The nature of the relationship between Renata and me is not even remotely romantic.”

“I saw you two dancing this morning.”

“It was just that, angel. _Danci_ -”

“ _Sensual bachata?_ To Christmas songs?” The girl lifted an amused eyebrow.

“She does make a good point, Uncle.” Renata’s smile became a tad dark, “ _But Bella_ , you shouldn’t feel jealous. Uncle promised to _teach you too_ , after all.”

“I’m not! _I’m not jealous!_ ” But her rosy blush betrayed her. Was it true the girl fancied Aro? It could partly explain her obvious contentment in Aro’s presence, but it did not, however, explain her being completely fine amidst five other vampires.

“ _But Bella_ , you must have forgotten that _I_ saw _you both_ last night-”

“ _Renata!_ ” The girl hissed at Renata, flustered, and her skin gained an even darker shade of pink.

_Had Aro actually touched the girl in any way? (Considering the fact his scent was all over the child, Carlisle was inclined to think that yes, indeed, Aro had had his way with the girl not long ago.)_

But Carlisle was **three thousand per cent sure** that **_Aro_** _**Would Never**_ coerce _anyone_ , not even a human, _and especially_ a child into…

He could sense that Esme was extremely uncomfortable.

Emmett was… not. There was a light frown on his face as he looked at the three guests, but it seemed Emmett was as disinclined to jump to this conclusion as Carlisle.

And Rose. Surprisingly, she had a rather speculating look on her face as she observed the two Volturi vampires and the human girl between them.

Something was _very wrong here_ \- hold that thought.

“ ** _You_ **own _Valerian Inc._?” How could Carlisle have missed such a thing?!

“You know, Isabella had the same reaction.” Aro said with a crease between his brows.

“I confess I’m surprised, Carly. I would think _you,_ _of all people,_ would know about our family business.” _Again with that maddening nickname. But-_

“I… truthfully, Aro. I had no idea.”

“The full name’s an acronym for Volturi.” Bella said with excitement. “How cool is that?”

“You know, _Dad_ , I’ve heard Alice and Edward discuss _Valerian Inc_. before.”

“Rose’s right. They definitely knew it belonged to your friends.” Emmett very helpfully offered. “We figured you already knew.” Then he respectfully added, “Father.”

Emmett was such a little shit sometimes.

“I wonder why they didn’t mention anything to you, honey.” Esme said and put her hand on his arm and squeezed it reassuringly.

_Edward must have known that Carlisle had no idea…_

Today’s surprises were piling up with increasing speed and Carlisle did not exactly find the feeling of that heavy pile enjoyable.

“It is _all good_ , my friend. I would be delighted to talk over our research and discoveries with you!” Aro delightedly said, but then his mood darkened in an instant, as if overshadowed by a black storm cloud. “That is, if you wanted to, of course.”

Valerian Occidental Laboratories and Technologies for Umbra Research Incorporated ( _'_ _Volturi' for short, indeed._ How _on earth_ had he _missed something of this magnitude?_ ) was one of the five world's leading companies (if not **the** leading one) in medical research and technological advances.

The company primarily designed next generation diagnostic equipment and new, advanced drugs for various medical conditions. Valerian Inc. was famous for its breakthroughs in biochemical engineering and pharmaceutical clinical trials.

In just the last five years Valerian Inc. had managed to stop the worldwide production of twenty-seven known prescription drugs that their in-depth research had found extremely hazardous to human health due to irreversible side effects, which had led to many legal trials and the eventual withdrawal of the drugs from the market. Plus, just last year they had exposed clinical research fraud in nine ongoing medical research projects.

The thing with a company such as Valerian Inc. was that its sheer influence, wealth and the army of competent employees starting from their researchers, engineers and ending with their chief officers and formidable legal department had made Valerian Inc. a force for everyone to be reckoned with in a very short amount of time.

“I would love to, Aro. _Really._ And I look forward to it.”

_Nevertheless._

_Something was definitely wrong here._

Why had Alice and Edward said nothing about the company?

Why had Alice not seen anything regarding Aro showing up?

Well… she had that weird flash of _something_ yesterday. But why hadn’t she called them in the past hour and a half?

Had Aro somehow figured out how to blind her? _To this extent?_

It did sound like something his old friend would like to accomplish.

_Well, if that’s the case, dear Alice and Edward and the rest of them were in for a lovely surprise themselves._

Aro’s Blackberry pinged once more and his attention slipped to his phone again. He texted a quick response back and put the phone away in his pocket.

“Can I offer you anything else?” Esme offered. “Or would you rather like to see the rest of the house?”

“It would be _wonderful_ to see more of your beautiful home, dear Esme.”

Esme stood and so did the rest of them. Esme started to lead Renata, who was closely followed by Aro and Bella, who were _holding hands_ , _again_. It was as if his friend was afraid of letting her wander five feet away from him. 

“All right, this is the living room, _as you could very well guess_. And you must have glimpsed the gallery already, when you came through the front door. We can finish the tour with it - view the gallery properly…” Esme quieted as she heard the same thing as the rest of them. Alice, Jasper, Edward and their two _invited_ guests had turned into the driveway and were rapidly approaching the house.

_“Odd. It appears we have visitors.” Edward said._

They’d stopped by the stairs to the second floor, “Does anyone of you play?” Bella asked, nodding to Edward’s black piano, which was placed a little off to the side from the stairs, near the windows to the balcony.

 _“What?!” Alice exclaimed. “I haven’t seen_ anything _…”_

“Somewhat. But it belongs to Edward. He loves playing… although Rose is very good too.” Esme answered and looked to Rosalie fondly, who was icily glaring at the instrument.

 _“Foreigners. They are thinking in… I don’t even..._ recognise _the language.”_

“Do you play, angel?”

_“I know that voice.” Eleazar said with surprise._

“Dear God, no. I wouldn’t go as far as to call myself tone deaf, but I’ve never really had the opportunity to learn. _Although_ … isn’t it all math, in the end? Perhaps I will give it a shot someday.” She turned back to Aro and grinned.

_“Aro Volturi?” Edward said in disbelief._

Esme started to move up the stairs, “The second floor is exclusively reserved for bedrooms. The design is mainly influenced by Japanese minimalist style…”

_“I can’t see anyone else’s future in the house besides our family. But… even these visions are distorted. Riddled with blank spots.” Alice sounded **very** distraught. _

They all moved to the stairs but Bella stopped a few feet behind their group, halting Aro with her, and was staring the flight of stairs down as if it had done her some grievous offence.

_“A heartbeat…” Carmen murmured._

“Um… I made a promise to myself, when I woke up yesterday night, to not step on another set of stairs ever again.”

 _“_ **That’s** _Aro’s car?” Jasper coughed a laugh._

“Angel…” For some reason Aro seemed deeply amused by her antics.

The vehicle stopped near the front and Carlisle heard the engine die.

“I. I- _I don’t want to break my other arm_ , okay?” She half pleaded to, half _glared_ at Aro.

Her _other_ arm? What was the girl talking about?

“Isabella. You cannot fear stairs for the rest of your life.” Aro’s voice was laced with humour.

A car door opened, as did the other three, and all of them got out of the car.

_Jasper whistled, “That’s a very tasty smelling human Aro’s brought with himself.”_

“Something bad is about to happen, I just know it.” Bella was getting increasingly upset.

Carlisle heard the front door being loudly pulled open.

“I promised to catch you, angel, remember? You will be completely saf-”

A loud, animalistic growl sounded from behind them and Carlisle turned just in time to see Edward emerge around the corner from the hallway and _dart to them, full speed, his eyes completely crazed, deep black pits of murderous intent, zeroed in on the human girl. **His teeth bared and glistening with venom-**_

The girl’s palpable fear tainted the air, but, just as Aro moved in front of Bella, three metres before reaching Aro, Edward collided with what appeared to be thin air and was propelled aside by his momentum and crashed into the piano with a deafening bang.

_Carlisle could not believe what was happening._

_Is this what pure, unadulterated shock felt like? He must have forgotten the feeling entirely._

The initial failed attempt at getting to the girl apparently had not succeeded to deter Edward in the slightest for he jumped back on his feet and leapt at the girl ( _and at the Volturi king and one of his Guard_ ) again, only to be thrown across the room for a second time and loudly crashed into the table, breaking the table itself beyond repair and everything on it in smithereens.

His family just stood there, frozen in stupefied disbelief. Renata had moved to stand by Aro’s side. And Bella. The poor girl had practically glued herself to Aro’s back.

His son was getting to his feet _yet again_ when Jasper and Eleazar burst into the room and forcefully restrained the snarling and struggling Edward and pulled him back into the hallway, through the front doors and into the woods.

A few seconds passed by until Alice and Carmen cautiously stepped into the room. Their eyes tracked the damage to the table, the displaced sofas, the broken piano, _~~and the pieces of the Japanese porcelain that littered the floor~~_ , and travelled around the room until they stopped at their frozen group.

His friend was the first to move as he turned around and wrapped his arms around the shocked and terrified girl who began silently crying in the crook of his neck, faint tremors running through her frame.

“Shhh, angel.” Aro consoled her in a soothing voice, which was a polar opposite to his murderous expression.

Carlisle didn’t know what had come over Edward, but looking at Aro’s face that promised painful retribution, he feared Edward might be living the last minutes of his ~~sad~~ immortal life.

“ _Shhhh_. The big bad, _feral_ vampire is gone, angel.” Which only made her sniffle louder.

Aro threw him one last glare (as they could all still hear Edward’s snarling in the distance, although it got fainter with every second), curled one arm around Bella’s waist and swept the girl across the room to the loveseat by the balcony door, Renata following on their heels with stone hard eyes, her expression completely frosted over. Aro sat down and pulled the human on his lap.

“Calm yourself, child.” Aro said as he ran his sharp nails through Bella’s hair.

“I-I’m t- _t_ _rying_!” The girl took beep shaky breaths, but was calming down incredibly faster than Carlisle would have expected of someone who had just been attacked by a feral vampire and _~~Jesus Christ, Edward, **what have you done**? ~~_

“You. You _said_ they didn’t f-feed on _humans_ …” Bella had her head pressed to Aro’s chest and were taking deep, measured breaths-

THE GIRL WAS IN ON IT THIS WHOLE TIME?!

…Of course she was. 

_Carlisle should have known._

This was exactly the kind of mischief Aro lived for.

Carlisle felt momentarily silly… and properly **_had_.**

“They don’t.” Aro assured her. “ _This_ , angel, is what happens when animal drinkers come across their singer.”

“They cannot handle the bloodlust and as a result might…” Aro lifted his eyes from the girl and looked directly into Carlisle’s own, “… _lose their heads_.”

Carlisle was one hundred per cent certain the only reason Edward was not a pile of smoking ashes was because Edward had been removed from the premises, _out of sight_ , and because Aro had his arms full of the human girl-

“Singer?” -who appeared to have forgotten a vampire had wanted to kill her barely two minutes ago, for she had closed her eyes and-

“Someone whose blood sings to them. Like a siren’s call.” – was she _getting sleepy?_ In _a vampire’s_ arms? _**Aro’s** arms? Had the child any inkling of just how many people Aro had… been the last thing for them to ever see? _

Carlisle could only confirm there was a first time for everything.

“Bella, you cannot sleep here.” Renata quietly said and the girl’s eyes instantly snapped open - alert, and _sharp_.

Bella slid off Aro’s lap and sat down on the loveseat beside him.

Practically not a trace of her earlier distress to be seen.

“Aro. Dear friend. I am _so very sorry_.” Carlisle said as he moved to the centre of the room, then he focused his gaze on the girl, “I am _truly sorry_ this happened, Bella. If I had known Edward-” only to be interrupted by his friend-

“No need to apologise for actions not your own, friend.” Aro said somewhat lightly, but he could see suppressed rage still simmering in his dark eyes. “Besides, _how could you have known, Carly_ , _mmm_?”

Carlisle’s eyes travelled to Alice, who had frozen not far from him with an almost pained expression on her face.

“Ah, yes. How positively lovely to finally make your acquaintance, dear Alice!” Aro jovially said.

“I have been told so much about you. You have left quite the impression on Demetri, dear.” Aro said with a perfectly friendly expression.

But.

Carlisle _knew_ Aro.

And even if everyone else was fooled by his, frankly, flawless performance of genial welcome, Carlisle could tell he did not like her. One bit.

“Aro. It is nice to… meet you too.” Alice said with a somewhat cautious but still distracted air about her.

Carlisle could only speculate that whatever his friend had done to blind Alice was more far-reaching and lasting than merely hiding from her so that he could successfully _surprise Carlisle_.

“And Carmen! I have not seen you for fifty seven years! How lovely!” Aro said from the green loveseat.

“Hello, Aro. Renata.” Carmen bowed her head a little, a custom ingrained in all of the Guard upon seeing the kings. Not that Carmen had been a member of the Volturi Guard. Far from it, but _Eleazar_ had. Looked like some things carried over even to the former Guards’ mates. _Not_ that it was a bad thing. Not at all. _Jesus... Get your shit together, Carlisle!_ “It is good to see you both again.” Carmen said.

“Hey, Carmen.” Renata waved. “Long time, no see.”

“ _How are you doing this?_ ” All of their attention jumped to Alice as she looked at the two Volturis and the human accusingly.

“I can’t see _any_ of your futures!” Alice cried ( _and daresay she looked a bit unstable_ ), “ _What have you done?!_ ”

“Alice, please, _calm down_. There must be a r-” - _easonable explanation._ But Aro interrupted him.

“How curious.” Aro said perplexed, but a faint smile tried to slip on his face. “Isn’t it curious, Renata?”

“It most certainly _is_ most curious, Master. Isn’t it so, Bella?” Renata parroted.

“So very curious.” The human said, but similarly to Aro, it was clear a smirk was trying to work its way on her face.

And all of a sudden, the girl did not look innocent, _at all._

“ _Stop it!_ ” Alice shouted at them. “You are disrupting _everything_!”

Carlisle could only watch in horror as Aro’s eyes hardened, Renata’s lips thinned and the girl’s incredulous expression was, to Carlisle’s mind, perfectly understandable, given the situation, and clearly spelled - ‘ _Was she for real?_ ’

“Alice!” Esme reprimanded, voicing all their shock.

Today was officially the worst day Carlisle has had since nineteen eighteen.

“Dear Esme.” Aro said, completely ignoring Alice, as he stood, Bella jumping to her feet two seconds later, “Thank you for the warm welcome. Perhaps, we will have that tour another time, if you will have us.” Renata went to the upturned sofa and collected their coats and Bella’s jacket, returned and handed them to Aro and the girl.

“Of course, Aro.” Esme promised. “Whenever you want.”

“We will let you catch up with our friends and… give you some time to… _speak with_ young Edward. _In private_.” Aro ~~ordered~~ allowed, as he shrugged on his coat. “For I fear my goodwill would run short, if we were to remain here.”

“Aro…”

“Peace, friend.” Aro said as he put his gloves on and clasped Carlisle’s hand and drew him in a warm embrace. “My offer still stands.”

“You know where to find us.” Aro released him. His eyes swept over the five other vampires in the room and stopped at Carmen.

“Give my greetings to Eleazar, dear. It is unfortunate we could not meet again under more… amicable circumstances.” Aro gave her a small, warm smile.

“I will, Aro.” Carmen promised.

Aro looked once more at them all with an undecipherable look in his dark, dark eyes, took the girls hand in his own and turned to leave.

“Oh, and Carlisle.” Aro looked back over his shoulder at him, “I will let this… _offence…_ slide, this once. For I am on holiday, and you are a friend.”

“But make no mistake.” Aro casually and kindly informed him. “ ** _There will not be a second time._** ”

And for the first time in a very long time, Carlisle felt his venom run cold.

The three of them left the house without another word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They finally got to surprise Carlisle and mess with the Cullens a bit, as promised. 
> 
> _This was what we have been waiting for all this time, wasn't it?_
> 
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	12. Why am I so hungry?

Renata turned onto the Olympic Highway and headed back in the direction of Forks.

Aro was sitting in the backseat diagonally across from Renata, his angel lifted on his lap with his arms wrapped around her and his cheek pressed to the crown of her head.

He could not believe Carlisle’s eldest had tried to ~~attack~~ eat Bella.

He did not care that she was another vampire’s singer ( _supposedly_ , it was just the most likely explanation for all the signs pointed to this conclusion). _Edward Cullen_ had **no right** to lose his bearings just because he came upon his singer.

He had never really considered the possibilities of animal drinkers exposing their kind publicly if they happened to run into their singer in a shopping mall, an airplane, an opera house, a university or _school_ (Isabella would have ~~most probably~~ gone to the same school here in Forks as the Cullen children, as _Edward Cullen._ This made Aro wrap his arms even tighter around the human), any space with numerous other humans who could witness a blood crazed vampire in all their monstrous glory.

Of course, it would not be overly hard to provide a plausible explanation that the general herd would jump at to explain the phenomenon, but such an event would still be documented, somewhere. It was not always possible to hack or destroy every device, all the physical copies of photographs or hardware, which contained evidence of such disastrous information. Something could always slip through the cracks.

“Ar-Aro… I… c-can’t brea-” he instantly loosened his hold on the girl, a little, and she gulped down a lungful of air.

_Didn’t the boy know not to touch another vampire’s human?!_

Aro wagered _Edward Cullen_ had not thought much of anything besides draining his angel dry.

 _Edward Cullen_ was very lucky Carlisle was his sire. _Exceptionally lucky._

However.

He had not lied to Carlisle. The next time Aro so much as got _a glimpse_ of that telepath, the boy was as good as gone.

It was the third day of Isabella meeting Aro and Renata and there had already been more than one close call to her life (ignoring the fact that she was constantly in the presence of beings that feasted on human blood, there had been the blasted birds during the flight to Seattle, her unfortunate tumble down the stairs and now another of their kind had tried to kill her in uncontrolled bloodlust). It had not even been forty-eight hours. All this could be just an awful heap of coincidences, but he did not _believe_ in _coincidences_ , especially ones that occurred with this kind of frequency.

Aro was starting to seriously consider changing her here in the States in the next couple of days and not wait until they got back home to Italy. He had wanted to postpone changing her for a few months until the girl reached her eighteenth birthday, but it seemed like such an enormous risk now.

That said, he would much rather turn her in a safe and familiar environment. _At the Castle_. He knew he was not going to want to part with his youngest progeny for the first year, at the least.

The bond between the sire and their progeny was very strong, usually. It was so for the majority of his kind. And he was no exception to this rule. There were those who were, of course. Those who could create dozens in a span of days and not feel anything towards their children. They were most often the culprits behind creating Newborn armies.

The bond usually tended to manifest in one of two ways, platonically (the most often) or romantically (very rarely, but it was possible).

With Jane and Alec it had been the former, _Thank Fate_. With… _His Darling_ it had been the latter, of course. _Didyme_ … he couldn’t decide. ~~He did not usually think about his other children. They had a separate, ** _guarded_** place in his mindscape, than the rest of the vampires, whose thoughts he had read, **_always_**. It hurt too much to think of them, so he did not. It was… better that way. But none of them had formed a romantic bond with him either. ~~

Those vampires who had known the humans prior to changing them, could sense fairly accurately how the bond is going to develop.

And he had a very strong feeling that with his angel it would indeed manifest as the romantic kind.

He was a little conflicted.

There was no question whether he wanted her as his child or whether he would turn her. He wanted her and he would definitely turn her.

But.

She was so young.

_So, so very young._

_Seventeen._

Only seventeen.

_Just a baby, really._

It was… a blink of an eye for someone like him.

Granted, any human’s age, be they _seventeen_ , thirty or fifty, was a blink of an eye for someone like him.

Still.

She was still a child even by human standards.

 _Almost a young adult_. It made him feel only marginally better.

He had thought _His Darling_ had been so young when he had become obsessed with her as a human (she had been only twenty-four when he had changed her in 630 BC; he had been around four thousand then).

His angel had joked about humans printing lies about darling Renata and him.

If the food ever got wind of ~~the owner~~ one of the major shareholders of _Valerian Incorporated_ being in a sexual relationship with someone who ~~was~~ looked like a teenager?

It may pose some inconvenience for him as a public figure, ~~for his family~~ , ~~for his company~~ (it was very fortunate he was a known recluse to those who had a more unhealthy interest in the inner workings of _Valerian Incorporated_ ).

Still.

He felt ~~a little~~ bad.

He would have preferred to let her live as a human for the next ten years (at least five), before changing her, but it was just not possible. The curse (usually afforded only the time of one to two years from the moment of learning their secret, around five with the diluted venom in her veins), plain old accidents (even without the curse at work, for Isabella had shared some of her unfortunate accident riddled medical history), his enemies (he did not doubt there might be some sordid plots to take his angel away from him, the longer she stayed human), to name a few star-crossed factors. But by some unfortunate twist of Fate, the accidents were gradually strengthening in severity. 

He could only hope there won’t be another one for a while now.

_There had to be some breathing space for the curse. There had to._

At least his angel liked him back (for some inexplicable reason).

“Is everything okay, Aro?” his angel tried to turn around to look at him, but he did not let her, “You seem sad.”

“Just thinking, angel. You should not worry about me.”

“I… Are you sure?”

“I am.”

She attempted to turn around again but this time he let her.

Isabella looked at him and after whatever she saw in his expression, enveloped him in a soft and scorching hug. _She was so warm._

“Don’t be sad.” His angel said and put her palm on his face. The skin her scalding palm touched burned, but it was such a sweet burn, he wanted _more_ … And there was nothing to distract him from the sensation, no swarming memories, feelings or thoughts of hers penetrated his mind. Aro gently took Isabella’s scalding hand and pressed his lips to the centre of her palm, and slowly placed more kisses on her skin as he gradually moved to her delicate, flaming wrist, all the while looking in her wide chocolate eyes, which gazed into his as if they had bewitched her.

He grazed her soft skin with his scalpel sharp teeth, almost breaking it, but not quite… _yet_.

Aro could hear her heart start beating louder and heavier in her chest.

She smelled… _divine_. Like _home_. And he knew she would taste even better, he’d had a small sample of her tainted blood yesterday, but he could tell just by her lovely scent alone that the drugs had broken down completely, her blood once again pure. And her mind was absolutely unreachable to him. It made him _a little_ _hazy_.

But this was not the place, nor the time for having her.

He would take his sweet time drinking from his angel. He wanted to make it very enjoyable for Isabella as well. He would prolong the experience as much as he could (there was only so much blood he could safely take from her). It was something he looked forward to with sweet anticipation. But… not right now.

 ** _Later_**.

Aro could see her pupils dilate in desire to his silent promise she read in his own equally dark eyes. He leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of her eye before pulling her flush against him, in a tight embrace. Her head resting on his shoulder, her warm breaths ghosting on his neck.

They stayed like this for a few minutes as they reached the town’s centre.

“I’m hungry.”

Aro couldn’t help the sudden amused smile that formed on his lips.

“Didn’t you have breakfast a few hours ago, angel?”

“I know, but I’m already famished.” Isabella said miserably, seemingly a bit confused, “I don’t know _why_ … I was fine all day yesterday just with breakfast. I don’t…”

“Can we stop at a shop here? Please? I want to get something for later.”

“It would not be the wisest course of action, I’m afraid.”

“Oh… Why?”

“The less people see you or us, or the _flashy_ car in this little town the better.”

“Oh… but. I. I guess there was something still left in the kitchen…” Isabella said with badly concealed dread. Aro had of course seen Renata’s notable attempt at breakfast for Isabella and he had to sadly admit darling Renata had no idea what food humans consumed _when_ or _how_. He’d bet none of his family, save himself and Ms Camilli, knew anything of importance about human food. And _he_ knew only because of his gift. It would be ~~hard~~ impossible _to not know_. Nevertheless, darling Renata had been more or less lucky in her recent attempt (plus, he doubted there had been many humans in the market at the late night hour ~~to spy on~~ from whom to get inspiration).

“Darling.”

“Master?”

“Would you go to Port Angeles and purchase some more food for Isabella?” He knew Renata would not want to leave him alone (relatively speaking) considering the stunt he pulled this morning.

“We could go together. It is not that far.” Renata suggested as she found his eyes in the mirror.

“I… would rather not suffer crowds in the next few hours.” He held her eyes and saw she understood everything that he did not speak out loud. That he did not want countless eyes on him and his ~~soon to be~~ child so soon after her life had been threatened. It was always a possibility there were more vampires, who were not the Cullens or dear Eleazar and dear Carmen, lurking around. He might… do something rash. If anyone so much as breathed too loudly at them. He needed a bit more time to… calm down.

“Er, Renata? I could make a list for you? So that you would get… my favourite things?” his angel weakly finished. It was adorable how she did not want to hurt Renata’s feelings.

“Alright.”

They drove through the little town and Isabella kept looking through the windows with unveiled interest. Aro could only speculate she was trying to see if she couldn’t spot her father somewhere. While it certainly was a possibility, Aro seriously doubted she would succeed. The impression he had gotten from Miss Young was that Charlie Swan would be spending more than just the Christmas Day and the Boxing Day at the Black’s in the Quileute reservation as he had accumulated quite the number of vacation days which he had to spend in order not to lose them permanently.

Even if they had dropped Isabella off at her father’s doorstep yesterday (which would never have happened, _in_ _any universe_ ) they might have found just an empty house, no Charlie Swan to answer the door for his daughter.

“What a fucked up ending to our hard earned fun that was.” Darling Renata spoke up a few minutes after they had left the town’s immediate vicinity. “I had expected our little game to come to an end a little while after the major and the know-it-alls returned but that was something else…” Renata whistled, “Nobody back home is going to believe me. Not even Heidi.” She seemed disproportionately glum about the family not taking her seriously, in Aro’s opinion. Everyone knew Renata did not tend to exaggerate things. However, it might indeed seem a tad unbelievable, this time. It was unbelievable even to him, and _he_ had been there.

“Perhaps.”

“I had no idea the golden eyes could be so… trigger happy.” Renata’s sounded a bit confounded.

“I admit I had overlooked this particular shortcoming most animal drinkers possess.” He reluctantly confessed.

To Isabella’s questioning expression, he elaborated, “The natural diet for all vampires is human blood. However, Carlisle’s family choose to drink animal blood.”

“Right. You said this already but I’m sensing a ‘but’ there somewhere.”

“It… is possible.” He noticed a vaguely disgusted look had appeared on Renata’s perfect features in the reflection on the windshield. “To survive by feeding only on animals.”

“You do not approve.” Isabella said, sudden realisation crossing her face.

“No, I do not. The thirst is much more prominent for them. It never really _goes away_. As it does for those who follow the natural diet. And while animal blood _is_ an alternative, it is usually only so when no other sustenance is available. Animal drinkers are weaker, as well. That said, a vampire can never master their bloodlust just by sustaining from animal blood, my dear friend Carlisle being an exception to this law.” Aro could hear fondness creep into his voice. He supposed it often did, when he talked about Carlisle.

“And while his family choose to consider themselves humanitarians, they are playing with fire by abstaining from human blood while submerging themselves in human company. It is exponentially more difficult to resist the call of human blood for them than it would be for someone like Renata or me.”

“So, what you are saying is they could be more dangerous to humans because of their diet?” Bella asked, a tad suspiciously.

“An example. You find yourself in a room with one human drinker and one animal drinker. Your nose starts bleeding. The human drinker could easily ignore the temptation, even if they were a little peckish and had not fed for a couple of weeks. The animal drinker. Well. If they had not already killed you by then, they would have to remove themselves from the room at once to avoid _slipping from their diet_.”

“Wha… You knew something like this could happen and you took me to see them with you anyway?”

“Angel. We honestly did not think Carlisle’s family would attack you. Not only is such an action exceptionally rude, there is an unwritten but nevertheless very real rule to not touch other vampires’ humans.” Isabella’s face tightened in vague distress.

“Riiight. You make it sound like these humans are vampires’ property.”

_Well. His angel was not exactly wrong._

Their silence was enough for her to catch on.

“ _What?!_ You cannot be serious! They thought I _belonged to you_? Like some… like some-” she had pushed away from him so that she could fully look at him with an indignant expression marring her young ( _so very young_ ) face.

“Angel. You _are_ mine.”

“I’m not-”

“You _are_. You are going to be my youngest child in a short while.”

“…child.” She said in a small voice with a light frown, but he could see desperation shining in her eyes.

“Precisely.” Aro could understand all too well how confusing and disturbing it might seem from a human perspective, especially given her obvious non-platonic feelings towards him.

“Any human a vampire would turn would become their child. Just as Esme, Emmett, Rosalie and… _Edward_ are all Carlisle’s children. Just as Alec and Jane are my children. Just as my… wife… and my… sister… had been my children.”

He heard how Renata’s grip on the wheel tightened.

He knew Renata had not known this. About Sulpicia and Didyme. Perhaps if she had… It was bad enough to experience the pain of the disappearance of a two and a half millennia old romantic bond _or_ a six millennia old familial bond. It was so much worse if they had doubled as bonds to children. _The pain_ … it never really went away. Perhaps it would. With time… but how much more time would that have to be… another hundred years? Five hundred? A millennia? _Two?_

… ~~Never?~~

He was brought back to reality by his angel wrapping herself softly around him.

“ _I’m sorry_.”

He put his own arms around the warm human again and looked out of the window. They were still on the highway but Lake Crescent could already be seen to their left. It would not be long before they turned off to East Beach Road.

“It was the worst case scenario. That someone of Carlisle’s family would attack you.”

“Knowing my luck…”

“Yes, I believe we saw your luck, in all its frankly absurd glory, half an hour ago. But we would not have let anything happen to you.”

“Yeah. I saw what Renata's shield did to... To Edward. It was super cool, Renata.”

“Thanks, Bella! Now you can have a better idea why I was a little… upset… when you just _walked through it_. As if it was not there.”

“I think I have a clearer picture now…” his angel smiled at her.

“It was truly awful luck for you. Meeting our singers is a very rare event. Once every two or three hundred years. The possibility of you being one for any of the Cullens did not even cross our minds.”

“But! We did have fun! _Even if it was brief_. You were completely right, Master! I never doubted you. _Did you see their faces?_ ” Renata started cackling, “They looked positively miserable! And appalled! That’s the right word. _Appalled._ ” Aro was so glad Renata was having such wonderful time. She had earned this. This and so much more for putting up with him for all these years. For protecting him and his family. For being his lovely companion, even if she did not need to be. For… loving him so much.

“You know what else we were right about?” There was a small, devious smile on Isabella’s face.

Her answer was Renata’s even louder laughter.

“You saw it, right?” Bella smirked up at him.

“If you mean whether I saw the monstrosity the Cullen children had strapped on the roof of their car then the answer is _yes_. I did see the poor thing.”

“Aww… don’t be like that. I think it was cute.”

Renata’s hands were shaking.

“Angel, you are going to cause Renata to crash the car, if you don’t stop.”

“Sorry, sorry.” His angel did not look sorry.

He sighed.

Renata had managed to calm down, taking deep, ~~unnecessary~~ necessary breaths-

“You are right. ‘Cute’ is not the right word for their tree. More like… _Festive?_ ”

The car swerved to the left, well into the adjacent lane.

“ _Isabella Swan!_ ”

***

“THE” _Hit._

“FUCK” _Hit. Hit. **Gasp**._

“IS” _Hit. Punch. Hit. **Yelp**._

“WRONG” _Hit. Hit. **Scream**. Hit. Hit. **Scream**._

“WITH” _Hit. Hit. Hit. Hit. Hit. **Crying**._

“YOU” _Hit. Hit. Stab. Hit. Hit. Hit. **Some more crying**._

“STUPID!” _Kick. Hit. Kick. H-_

“Ro-!”

“SHUT!” _Elbow to the nose._

“ _Ouch!_ ”

“THE FUCK!”

_Slap._

“Emmett! Get her of-”

“UP!”

_Double slap._

It had already been five whole minutes of Rosa beating Edi to a pulp.

Usually, as far as Eleazar could remember, Esme, Alice or Carlisle came to Edward’s aid and made her stop fairly early on, but Esme was sitting on the piano chair and forlornly gazing at the blue-white porcelain shards that had rained down on what was once a very nice piece of musical instrument and didn’t seem to notice (or care much about) anything that was happening to poor Edward; Alice was sitting on an adjourning sofa from Eleazar and Carmen and seemingly viewing vision after vision, completely oblivious to what was happening around her (to poor Edward) and Carlisle, well, his friend was sitting on the emerald green loveseat with his elbows on his knees and his face pressed into his palms.

Eleazar and his _cariño_ were sitting on the sofa (previously occupied by Aro, Renata and Aro’s human. He could tell by their unique scents, which were still faintly clinging to it, despite the forty minute long airing of the house to get the exceptionally lovely scent of Aro’s human out of the house for Edi’s sake) and, just the same as Emmett and Jasper, watching the deeply satisfying spectacle of Edi being beaten up by the lovely Rosa.

One would think that having a gift of telepathy would help poor Edward in a situation like this, but, alas, having lived with the boy for seven decades now, Eleazar could only assume that Rosa had long since figured out how to muddy up her thoughts so that Edi wouldn’t catch on fast enough. It was only logical, when he thought about it. At least it was what he could observe from his seat on the sofa. Edward tried, valiantly, to block the hits, but, _too late_. Every. Single. Time.

_The girl was something else._

“Emmett!”

Hit. ( _To the ribs. Ouch._ )

“Please!”

Hit. ( _To the throat this time._ )

“SHUT IT!”

Hit.

“ _Carlisle!_ ”

This at last seemed to have an effect on his friend as he slowly uncovered his face and looked to the live entertainment himself.

“Rose.” Carlisle quietly said.

Carlisle’s voice appeared to do the trick because Rosa stopped hitting Edi, but her knee was still pressed between his shoulder blades and one of her fists was still holding his head up by his copper hair.

“That’s enough.” Carlisle heavily sighed.

 _Dios_ , Eleazar fucking loved visiting the Cullens. They were hilarious.

Rosa dropped Edward’s head and gracefully lifted herself up from his back and went (but not without a parting kick to Edi’s right ankle)-

“ _Goddamnit_ , Rosalie!” -to sit down next to Emmett who was perching on the sofa in front of Eleazar and had been recording the America’s funniest domestic violence video of the year with a shiny Canon digital camera.

Jasper was sitting beside Alice and watching his psychic wife with a worried expression. Eleazar couldn’t exactly say he blamed him. Alice had been acting strange. Stranger than usual, but Eleazar would say that she was slowly getting better. At least the distraught and pained expression from her face was gone. And if he would have to guess, the faraway look was almost the norm for the girl.

Edward in the meanwhile had dragged himself to the closest wall and was exhaustedly leaning his back and head against it.

“Edward. Explain yourself. What in _the seven hells_ happened to you today. What possessed you to try and eat a human in our home.” Carlisle demanded in a tired and, dare he say, _wary_ voice.

“I.” Edward snapped his broken nose in place with his right thumb and index finger. “I have no idea. She just smelled so… **_amazing_**.” Eleazar could in fact see how his golden eyes (from a fresh feed - Jasper and Eleazar had dragged him into the woods and Edward had managed to drain two deer before they had gotten Carlisle’s text that they were safe to come back, as Aro, Renata and Aro’s human were gone) turned two shades darker just by remembering the girls lovely scent.

“I just… knew I had to _have_ … her.” And now Edi looked on the verge of crying, and if vampires were capable of crying, tears would be streaming down Edward’s cheeks. “Nothing else mattered at that moment. _Only her_.”

Carlisle breathed out another heavy sigh.

“I’m so sorry, Carlisle.” The sorry heap of Edward quietly mumbled.

“Then it is as Aro said. Not that I am surprised.” Carlisle said.

“She was his singer?” Eleazar asked.

“Yes. That is exactly what Aro said.”

“Figures.” Eleazar had had his fair share of singers (two) in his two and a half hundred years when he had still kept to their natural diet. “Have any of you met your singers before? Except for Edi here, of course.”

“Don’t call m-“

“I have, once.” His _cariño_ said from his left.

He looked at Carlisle, who shook his head ‘no’. _Figures_.

Esme lifted her eyes from the broken china pieces and looked at him, “There was this one hiker on the Appalachian Trail in 1950. I couldn’t resist as well. My only slip-up to this day.” And she went back to studying the pieces. _What was so special about them?_

He looked to Alice, but she was still lost in her own world, Jasper shook his head, a ‘no’ from him too, unexpected, but okay.

“None for me.” Rosa said from his right. Which left only Emmett-

“Two. 1941 and 1987.” Emmett said with a dreamy expression on his boyish man-face.

“ _Afortunado hijo de puta_.” Emmett was one lucky vampire, indeed. “Two in what, _seventy years?_ Damn.”

Usually it was more within the lines of one singer per one to three hundred years, on average.

“And that would be two for me too before joining the Denalis.” Eleazar finished.

“Aro made it sound as if human drinkers could have resisted the temptation.” Rosa commented from his right.

“Well. He was not wrong. I definitely could have resisted the call, if I had wanted to, back when I was still in the Volturi Guard. It is not impossible to do.” Eleazar remarked. “Of course, nobody of sane mind would try to resist the pull.” He looked to his blond friend. “ _Lo siento_ , Carlisle.”

Carlisle just waved him away. “None taken, friend.” _Odd._

“In this particular case, however…” Eleazar continued and he threw a shrewd look to Edward who was watching him with an uncomfortable expression, “nobody of sane mind would even try to look at their singer, if the particular human in question belonged to Aro.”

“What a spectacular fuck up, Edi.” Eleazar couldn’t help but add. “I’m surprised you are still in one piece.”

“I’m surprised too. You just _don’t fuck_ with another vampire’s humans. ” Jasper commented from the sofa in front of him. “It just isn’t done, Edward. _Ever._ ”

Eleazar supposed it could be possible (though not overly likely) that Edward did not know of one of the basic vampire customs of not touching those humans which belonged to other vampires. (Although, Eleazar supposed Edward in his craze had not been able to think much about anything else aside from sucking Aro’s human dry.)

It was just not done.

 ** _But_** _**if it was**_ , it was equivalent to throwing a gauntlet at that vampire’s feet.

These things were always ugly and ended badly.

Eleazar could only assume that Aro, for the sake of his friendship to Carlisle, had stayed his hand, somehow. Usually Aro did not bother with compassion and second chances for the stupid.

A tremendous show of friendship and restraint from Aro.

“What’s the reason Edward here is still alive, how do you think?” Jasper asked.

“We did pull him away fairly quickly, Jasper. But still. It is curious…”

“ ** _Don’t_ **_say that word!_ ” Alice shouted from beside Jasper.

“ _Darlin’!_ ” Jasper exclaimed, taken aback. He clasped her shoulder and Alice deflated.

“I- I’m sorry, Eleazar.” Alice lowered her eyes and sadly apologised. “They really messed with my visions somehow.”

“Yes, how _did_ they do it? How is it possible you could not see them at all?” Rosa was very intrigued, as were they all, he could imagine.

“I don’t have a clue. It was as it there was a huge _nothingness_ where their futures should have been.” Alice sounded positively miserable from her spot, leaning against Jasper. “I have no idea how they could have done something like this. I’ve never felt so _blind_ before.”

“Whatever they did messed even with some of the visions of your futures. Made them soundless, or there _was_ sound, but no visual. It was…” Alice shivered. Then looked to all of them with wide, scared eyes and whispered, “ _…freaky_.”

“What was Aro even _doing_ here?” Eleazar asked everyone around. “It is so unlike him to travel alone, only with Renata.”

“He said he had missed me, believe it or not. And you must know how much Aro loves surprises.” Carlisle offhand comment made Eleazar cringe. _Aro_ had missed _Carlisle_ and come here _himself_? But Aro’s love for messing with everyone was legendary. Eleazar himself had been an unwitting victim of Aro’s ruthless mischief many a time.

The worst thing Aro had done to Eleazar (as punishment for failing an assignment in Romania because he had been… _distracted…_ by a pretty face the fucking Romanians had planted in his path) had been sending him on a “ _scouting mission, dear Eleazar”_ to this “ _completely harmless coven, dear Eleazar_ ” of an old friend of Aro’s in China in 1884. Aro had asked him to stay there for a full month (but Aro had carelessly allowed him to leave _earlier_ if he so wished), to properly acquaint himself to their customs among detecting any potentially valuable prospective assets _“as a cultural exchange, dear Eleazar. My dear friend Li Hua was simply ecstatic to hear a foreigner was finally going to visit. She was, she was. Please, send her my regards, will you?”_

He should have known something truly nasty awaited him considering the sadistic smirks Caius had kept surreptitiously throwing his way (though it was practically his default expression) or the pitiful glances of Sulpicia and Marcus (those, on the other hand, should have clued him in). As it turned out, Li Hua and her clan of seven daughters were not vampires as he had been lead to believe but a bunch of Honest-To-God succubi demons. Not the cute vampire seductresses Tanya, Kate and Irina were sometimes referred to as. The three Denali sisters were practically cute, fluffy lambs as opposed to the mind ensnaring, tempting, sexually addictive magical beasts that were Li Hua’s family.

Eleazar had tried to escape from their seductive clutches since the first day (he was such a fucking idiot) when he finally understood just what kind of a lion’s den Aro had sent him into. As he was immortal, the beautiful but deadly creatures’ inherent nature could not kill him, but as they were immortal themselves, Eleazar could not kill _them_ (he had tried, in the beginning. But they just kept waking up without a scratch on them, the demons. Or with their magical blood replenished in minutes. Eleazar knew that there _had to_ _be_ a way to kill them, _permanently_ , but he did not possess the knowledge).

He’d tried killing them, running away, bribing them, tricking them, everything he could think of… without success. In the tenth day he had fallen to their charm. He had _willingly given in_. He just couldn’t resist the spell they had cast on him. His will had been too weak (he had not met his Carmen yet) and had _given in_. After the thirty day mark, when Eleazar had been convinced that he had developed a perpetual aversion to sex _of any kind (even if it had been bloody brilliant, oh, the things he had learned from them… cultural fucking exchange indeed)_ and had given up hope of ever getting away from the pulchritudinous demons, Jane had showed up (exactly after a full fucking month, just as that Italian ~~tease~~ bastard had said) and had easily extracted him from the lovely beasts (as they had no interest in females, children or the particular kind of pain-play Jane liked to indulge in **_with anybody_** ).

Eleazar was still unsure if he had forgiven Master Aro for-

He was momentarily distracted by the sound of retching that was coming from Edward and lo and behold – the boy was throwing up his recently consumed blood all over Esme’s lovely floor.

“ _Jesus Christ_ , Edward!” Esme yelled. “What _the fuck_ is wrong with you?!”

 _Querido Dios del_ _cielo_ , Eleazar had never heard Esme use such crude language before. _Had the porcelain really been **that** valuable?_

The rest of the Cullens looked at the boy in shock mixed with disgust and an unhealthy amount of curiosity.

Except for Jasper. He must have partially pieced together the reason for Edward’s loss of breakfast by Eleazar’s and Edward’s emotions. Because he was laughing so hard he was wheezing.

And by doing so, Jasper pulled all of them under his bout of hilarity a second later.

Eleazar had to say it again. Visiting the Cullens was fucking hilarious.

Two minutes later they had all calmed down, though Edward still looked green.

“Please. Please, please.” Edward said in a queasy voice, “don’t **_ever_ **think about what that _Satan_ and those demons did to you.” What? Satan? _Satan?_ … _Aro?_

“ _Mind how you speak about the king, boy!_ ”

“He is no king of mine.”

Eleazar could not believe his ears.

He glanced at Carlisle who had put a hand over his mouth but, remarkably, did not seem all that surprised by Edi’s rebellious views here.

Ah, not a new development then.

“He _is_ , whether you like it or not, kid.” Eleazar said in a serious tone. Edward was such a stubborn idiot sometimes.

“Edward, it is unheard of for Aro to let someone live much less look the other way in face of what you did.” Carmen soundly informed the boy.

“I did not attack _him_. Just the… the girl.”

This was **_bad_**.

To be honest, Eleazar was ~~a little bit~~ very much surprised Edward was still breathing.

Attacking one of the kings? _was really bad_.

Attacking Aro? _was exponentially worse_.

Attacking Aro’s _human_? _it was…_ Eleazar could not even properly express what a tremendous faux pas _that_ was.

Eleazar lifted his eyes to Carlisle and could tell that Carlisle’s face mirrored his own thoughts on Edward’s astounding screw-up of an introduction to the Volturi king ~~(that mattered)~~.

“Son. Attacking another vampire’s human is a clear attack on the vampire that human belongs to. You **_cannot_** do that.” Carlisle said.

“How can **_you_ **say something like that?” Edward exclaimed, gaping at Carlisle as if seeing him for the first time.

“Son. These are ancient customs vampires have lived by for centuries. I can’t imagine you have not seen _anything_ in other vampires’ minds to clue you in.”

“Of course I have. But they are _barbaric customs_. How can you agree with any of them…”

“It is not a matter of agreeing. It is the reality we live in. And it is not in our power to change them.” Carlisle said, but Eleazar could see he might as well be talking to a wall. Dios Santo. “You _need_ to _accept it_ , Edward.” But the boy was shaking his head.

“You are wrong, Carlisle. I do not need to accept anything,” the impetuous boy declared.

Eleazar looked at the rest of his friend’s family and saw various levels of more or less incredulous expressions on their faces as they looked down at the seething copper haired boy.

“Friend. I am truly sorry to have to tell you this, but if Aro gets a glimpse of this lovely conversation, _and he will_ \- _sooner or later_ , much less a whiff of Edi’s sentiment here, no friendship between you and Aro will be able to save Edward anymore.”

“… _I know_ ,” was Carlisle’s shaken, mumbled response as he ran his fingers through his short blond hair, dismayed. “Aro already said as much, before he left. That this is a _one-time thing_.”

“How can you be so fucking stupid, Edward?!” Rosa was practically oozing anger. Poor major. How he could stand living with this level of unnecessary drama was beyond Eleazar’s comprehension. “Do you _want_ _to die_? Because it sure looks like it from where I’m sitting.”

“No. I’m not going.” Edward said with a pinched expression.

Everyone looked to Alice. You see, there was this tone Edi always adopted when commenting on Alice’s visions he could see from her mind.

“Edward should go to Norway. To the Denali sisters.” Alice said with glazed over eyes. Then she adopted a foreboding cadence, “ _it is the only way_.”

“As opposed to what?” Carmen asked.

“Any other action _or inaction_ – staying here or leaving for any other place ends with _nothingness_ for Edward. And nothing beyond the nothingness.”

“Can you… elaborate, Alice?” Carlisle prompted the little seer.

“For example, I see you and Eleazar driving around a lake, a couple hours from now, stopping in front of a lovely two storey log cabin, getting out of the Mercedes, walking to the door, knocking on the door, the door starting to open and… poof! _Nothingness_.”

“Plus this vision lacked sound. I could see perfectly well, but, I couldn’t hear any voices or sounds.”

“However, I can see you leaving the house, after an unknown amount of time. It will be dark outside, though.”

“What I mean is – you have futures, all of you, even if I do lose you for a bit.”

“ _Edward doesn’t_.” She looked to Edi, who was starting to look appropriately scared, at last. Good for him. “If your future vanishes, _you vanish_.”

“Edward. It is non-negotiable. You will leave for Norway…” Carlisle looked to Alice and inclined his head.

“Today. And you must take the road to Seattle which goes south from here. Not the one through Port Angeles.”

“Why?”

Alice and Edward grimaced near simultaneously.

“Edward won’t get past Lake Crescent.” Alice whispered.

Esme, Carlisle, Emmett and Rosa exchanged loaded looks.

“…Aro said they were staying by the shore of Lake Crescent. In a lodge house. Before you returned.” Emmett eventually explained.

“ ** _How_** _are they doing this?_ ” Alice was starting to get worked up again so Jasper enveloped her in a calming hug, stopping any hysterics before they could properly start anew.

“Is there truly nothing we can do to help Bella?” Esme asked from the piano chair on his far left.

“Esme. Darling. She belongs to Aro. There is noth-”

“How can you say that! Couldn’t you tell what he had done to the poor child?!”

Eleazar was missing something. _Child?_

“Child?” He looked to Carlisle and saw him wince.

“Yes… a girl named Isabella. Around fourteen years ol-”

Only to be interrupted by Rosa’s giggling.

“Oh My God! You are hopeless, _doctor_. The girl was much older. At least sixteen. I would say seventeen, even eighteen.”

“She definitely did not loo-”

“Trust me.” But seeing Esme’s and Carlisle’s dubious looks Rosa huffed an annoyed breath, “it was the clothes, alright? That pink sweater? I have no idea where she got something like that but that thing would make even me look fourteen again.”

“Yeah, that’s it, Rosy! That’s what I’ve been missing and couldn’t figure out!” Emmett laughed from beside his wife. “Damn… you’re good.”

Carlisle sported a stunned expression on his face until he reluctantly said, “I though as much at the beginning, when I saw her outside the door in her black jacket, but then she took it off.” Carlisle shook his head in amazement. “I’ll be damned.”

“Alright. The girl’s seventeen. What’s so special about Aro’s human?”

“The girl was covered in Aro’s scent.” Carlisle unwillingly admitted. _WHAT?_

“What do you mean?”

“ _Drenched_ in it.”

Edward must have read some of their collective memories from earlier because he started shouting-

“ _Are you serious!?_ The bastard kidnaps her, drags her all the way to here and practically _admits_ to having fucked her-” Eleazar could feel his hands clenching into fists in response to his sudden rage, “-and you do not want to help!”

The boy was practically begging _on his knees_ for his head to be detached from his body.

“Edward, he _did not imply_ -”

“Aro’s ‘She is _wonderful_ company?’”

“Renata’s ‘ _I saw you both last night’?_ He was all over the girl on the coach Eleazar and Carmen are sitting right now!”

“Edward, I think you are taking things out of proportion here… _and_ _context_.” Carlisle calmly said.

“He was touching her all the time!”

“What?” That did not sound like Aro. “Is that true, Carlisle?”

“He wouldn’t let go of her hand. Didn’t have his gloves on as well.” Carlisle reluctantly admitted.

“He kissed her face a couple of times.” Rosa added. This was unexpected but not unheard of-

“Are you sure that was not part of the performance?” Emmett asked.

“…Performance?”

“They put on quite the show.”

“The girl. _Isabella_. She said they kidnapped her from San Francisco airport, _the day before yesterday_.” Rosa said, “While I think they were not lying about this, the girl knew about vampires, even if Aro, Renata and Bella played it as if she had no idea, before you all showed up. The girl _knew_. Eddy here just ruined their fun with his spectacular entrance.”

“The human was… spunky. I liked her.” Emmett said, “Practically yelled at the big bad Volturi vamps if ‘ _they were nuts’_ for letting her help wrap up three hundred year old porcelain vases for Esme.” And Emmett nodded to the white-blue shatters on the piano pile. _Oh, Edi._

Wait-

“She _yelled_ at Aro?” He asked, incredulous. Carlisle nodded his head, a small, amused smile curving his lips downwards. “ _And lived?_ ”

“Called him nuts too, just as Emmett said.”

“ _Ooh lá lá!_ ” Eleazar exclaimed, “She must be quite the firecracker to keep up with Aro and Renata’s crazy.”

“Knew we were vampires from the get go, but there was not a trace of fear in her. _I should have realised_ …” His friend said, closing his eyes.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, honey. They tricked us all.” Esme said and she got up and sat down on Carlisle’s lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Speak for yourself,” Rosa said, “They were much too chummy, the three of them.”

“Are we _sure_ he’s going to eat the kid? Aro seemed very fond of her, as was Renata.” Emmett hesitantly asked, “They were way too friendly…”

“The way he looked at her…” Rosa said.

“You don’t think-” Emmett started to speculate-

“Oh, you can’t be serious.” Edi whined from the floor.

“-the girl could be gifted.” Carlisle finished, stunned.

 _Hmm_. Eleazar squinted his eyes at Alice.

“Alice. Have you seen Aro or Renata in your visions before?”

Alice exchanged a look with Edward. _What ever did_ that _mean?_

“I have. Both of them.” Alice said, completely sure of this.

“You don’t think…”

“It could be the girl.” Eleazar said as he looked around the room to all of them, “Could be the reason they kidnapped her in the first place. Aro does not… play with his food. Usually.”

“Edward. Did you pick up anything of interest from the girl’s thoughts?” His _cariño_ asked.

Edward was thinking. A deep frown marring his face. “No. I heard only them. They were thinking in a language I’ve never heard before. Couldn’t understand a thing. No memories either.” Edward looked at them, a little uneasy. “I don’t remember hearing anyone else’s thoughts other than yours.”

“It might not mean anything, you know.”

“I could feel the girl was terrified. Of Edward.” Jasper said. “Aro was… _enraged_.” Jasper shuddered. “As was Aro’s guard.”

“Didn’t have the time to pick up anything else.” Jasper said apologetically, “Sorry.”

Eleazar considered this for a moment.

“ _If_ … the girl is indeed the reason Alice cannot see their futures, and Edward here could not hear her thoughts…”

“Good Lord. She must be exceptionally gifted.” Carlisle said.

“To be able to thwart Alice’s and Edward’s abilities still as a human…” it was a deeply startling thought, “ _The potential_ …”

“If this turns out to be true...”

“ _That lucky Italian ~~t-~~ bastard_…” He shook his head in amazement. They must find out, oh, the curiosity was killing him.

“I imagine Aro plans to change her.” Carlise said in realisation.

“Aro has not changed anyone himself since Alec and Jane. It’s been over a thousand years since then. I agree. If the girl is this talented, he would want to do it himself.” Eleazar was sure of this.

At their questioning faces he explained, “He would usually delegate the task to someone from the coven who was willing to take on the responsibility of a progeny, especially if they did not have young children themselves. The newest additions to their coven, Emil and Jacques, were changed by Lily and Corin, respectively.”

“I’ve met only Corin.” Carlisle confessed, intrigued. “I’ve never met Lily myself. Only heard of her in passing, but nothing concrete.”

“Lily is the Volturi’s deadliest assassin. She is the fastest vampire I know… sorry Edi.” He smirked at Edward. “Well, perhaps the second fastest. I’m not sure who is faster, Aro or her.” Eleazar amended.

“She was changed at forty-two, about one hundred years before the twins. And she is stronger than Felix, despite being Alice sized.” He winked at the little seer. “Very handy with any type of weapon, especially swords.” Eleazar said with a faraway look, “you should have seen some of the duels between her and Master Aro.”

“A sight to behold.” Eleazar sighed in admiration.

“She’s that good?” Jasper lifted both of his eyebrows.

“Better. She even convinced Aro to teach her some of the forgotten arts from Predynastic Period of Ancient Egypt. I do not know what exactly she said or did to convince him, but Aro folded in the end. Those fights were… like nothing I have seen before. Best word to describe them would be… Alien.”

“I’m sorry. Predynastic?” Jasper said, incredulous. “ _ **Predynastic**?_ Wouldn’t it mean-”

“Yo sé, amigo.” Eleazar said. “Aro’s pretty old.”

“Old? _Old?_ ” Jasper said, shocked. “It would mean he’s _at least **five thousand** **years old**_.”

“And you would be correct.”

“Well. It definitely felt like it when he walked into the room.” Rosa said.

“No one should live that long. He must have killed _hundreds_ of _thous_ …” Edward looked as if he would hurl, again.

“You are going to clean all your blood up, Edward, before you leave. I’m not doing it. Neither is anyone else.” Esme talked right over Edi, “I dearly hope you can get it out of the cedar flooring, young man.” Esme did not have to be a singer for her words to sound like music to Eleazar’s ears.

“When must Edward leave?” Jasper asked.

“There is a flight to Oslo in four hours from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. If we leave in the next fifteen minutes and take Rose’s Mustang, Edward can make it on time to the flight.” Alice said.

“We?” Edward asked, hopeful.

“I’m not going to let Edward drive my car. Looks like we will escort you to the airport, brother.” Rosa informed.

“Don’t any of you want to come with me to Norway?” Edi asked, hope shining in his eyes.

“There is only one ticket left.” Alice compassionately said and Edward let his head drop in defeat. “I’m sorry, Edward.”

“This is the worst day of my life.”

“Edward. You get to _keep your life_ , this way. Now, clean up the blood and go get your things.” Carlisle said in a voice that allowed no discussion, “I have to call Tanya and inform her of the situation. She will be more than happy to have you with them, I am sure.” Eleazar had no doubt about that himself. Tanya loved the boy.

“For how long?” Edward asked, a bit desperate.

“As long as the sisters stay there. I’ll let you know about what happens here and when you can safely return.”

“What about school?” _Dios mío_.

Carlisle sighed. “I will inform the school that you have contracted pneumonia over the Christmas holidays.”

Carlisle got to his feet, “Now. Please, pack your things. I will make that call,” and headed to his study.

An hour later found Carlisle, Esme, his _cariño_ and Eleazar sitting in the now cleaned up living room, Carmen and Eleazar having unpacked their things in the guest bedroom, Esme and Carlisle having removed the broken piano and table as well as the glass and porcelain shards that had covered the floor (Edward had cleaned up the blood, though he hadn't been able to get the stain from the puddle of blood out of the soft hardwood. Esme had not been pleased).

Emmett, Rosa, Alice and Jasper had decided to accompany Edward to the airport.

“What are you going to do, Carlisle?” Carmen asked while she helped Esme find options for a replacement to the broken table and piano by searching through various online interior design shops and piano stores, and old book-size catalogues Esme had brought down from the attic. “Aro said you know where to find them. Do you?”

“They did not say precisely. Only that they had settled in a lodge house somewhere on the shore of Lake Crescent.” Carlisle replied. “But. There are not that many properties around the lake which are rented out and are as nice as Renata made it sound. I believe I know which cabin they are staying at.”

“Besides, it’s the lake you drove past, on the right side of the road between Port Angeles and Forks. It wouldn’t be overly difficult to find them even if it is not the right house.” Esme said as she finished going through another telephone book sized journal.

“I want to talk to him. Thank him for what he did, or rather what he… _did not do_.” Carlisle said. “Besides, I hate how things were left.”

“When are you going?” Eleazar asked.

“I think if I leave now, I will have plenty of time to talk to him before my shift started.” Carlisle said as he looked at the sunny sky outside. “Do any of you want to come with me?”

“Oh, I’d rather… not.” His _cariño_ said, “They are nice enough, Aro and Renata, but they make everything so intense. I can never let my guard down around them.”

“I’ll stay here with Carmen, honey.” Esme looked at the pile of books and then to the stain on the floor. “We have things to do.”

“Alright. Eleazar?”

“I would love to keep you company, friend.” He said as nonchalantly as he could manage. “And I didn't have the chance to say hello to them. I haven't seen Aro in more than fifty years… Plus, I want to meet this mystery human for myself. Find out if we are correct in our theory about her being gifted.”

“Well, good luck to you both.” His _cariño_ said with a sweet smile and picked up another book-sized journal.

***

“ _Why am I still so_ **_hungry_**?”

Carlisle heard Bella miserably ask.

They were definitely heading to the right place then. Just as he had suspected.

“ _All of the candy is gone, as are the mandarins, and the olives, and the energy drink, and I ate the whole honey jar. The Whole Jar, Aro! It’s honey! Nobody can finish an entire jar of honey in one go_ or _want more! …And now I’m even starting to think the lemons look appetising_ …” The girl sounded as if she was on the verge of tearing up. “ _What is_ wrong _with me_?”

“ _It will pass, angel.” Aro assured the distressed girl, amused._

“ _You are clearly not feeling my pain, mister,” the girl pouted._

“ _Angel, it cannot be as bad as you are making it to sound_.”

“ _I’ve never felt this… **starved**. Not even when I had the stomach flu and couldn’t keep anything down for three whole days. It’s driving me mad_.”

“ _I am sorry, child. I… might have overdone it, a bit_.” Overdone what?

“You think _?_ ” _the girl grumbled._

_“Renata will be back in an hour, she will bring more food for you.” Aro placated her in a calming voice._

_“Is this how you feel all the time?_ ” _The girl asked in a compassionate voice._ “ _If it is, I am so very sorry, Aro._ ”

“ _I cannot say for sure, as I do not know exactly how you are feeling right now_.” Carlisle and Eleazar exchanged startled, incredulous looks. Did Aro just admit to not being able to-

“ _Nevertheless. I would say it is much worse for us, when we have not fed for a while_.”

“ _How can you_ live _like this?_ ” _Bella asked sadly._

“ _You get used to it. Ignore it, forget about it entirely. The first year is the hardest, admittedly. However, if you do not skip any of your meals, you should not feel any discomfort_.” _Aro said simply, carelessly dismissing the issue._

“ _Okay_.” So it was true. Aro was going to change the girl.

They sounded so close together.

“ _Is that Renata’s car?” Bella asked in a hopeful voice. “Is she back already?_ ”

Carlisle exchanged another long look with Eleazar. No human should be able to hear them yet. They were at least three hundred metres from the house where Aro and Bella were having their conversation.

“ _I’m afraid not, angel._ ”

“ _Oh_.” _Bella’s disappointment was palpable._

“ _It is Carlisle, most likely. I did invite him over, after all._ ”

“ _I think I liked him. And his golden eyes looked really cool_. _Just as Renata said they would_.”

“ _You wound me, angel_.” _Aro said in a fake-hurt tone_.

“ _But_ **_not_** _as pretty as yours, Mr Very Evil Vampire_.” _The girl laughed._

“ _Thank you, Little Lamb_.” _The girl giggled_ , _but after a few beats breathed out an unhappy sigh._

“ _What happened to the corn, hmm?_ ” _Aro asked, but his voice was suddenly muffled._

“ _Nothing. I just don’t like popcorn_.” _Aro laughed_.

“ _Then you are not as hungry as you think you are_.” _Aro sounded thoroughly amused._

“ _I so am. There is no way popcorn should be considered food_.”

“ _What am I going to do with you… I believe I spied a coconut this morning. Is it too already gone?_ ”

“No…”

“ _Oh?_ ”

“… _I’ve been saving it._ ” _The girl reluctantly admitted and Aro snorted jocundly._

“ _Angel… Renata will be back soon_. ” _Aro said, exasperated._ “ _You should eat it now, surely you will feel better afterwards._ ”

“ _I. Okay.Yes. You are completely right. I’ll go do that_.”

Carlisle could not hear her steps but her heartbeat became fainter, as if she had moved behind another wall.

He slowly slid the car to a stop in front of the spacious log cabin and both he and Eleazar got out of the car.

They moved to the glass door and Carlisle softly knocked on the glass.

He almost gave a full body twitch as the door opened with a soft click. _By itself._

“Come in.” Aro invited from within the house.

Carlisle opened the door wider and went inside the foyer, Eleazar stepping in right after him and closing the door behind them.

They moved down the hallway and soon enough descended into a very spacious but cosy living room. The fire was pleasantly cracking in the fireplace.

Aro was sitting cross-legged on the white sofa nearest to the windows, which presented a truly amazing view to the lake, and was still wearing the same clothes from before, only, he had gotten rid of his shoes, his feet bare. Aro was facing the rest of the room so Carlisle could see how a huge smile slid on his face at seeing who his guests were.

“Carlisle! And Eleazar!” Aro cheerfully greeted them. “How very nice to see you again!”

“Hello, Aro.” Eleazar cordially hailed and bowed his head. “I can only say the same.”

“I was so very saddened I had missed you due to the heated moment, but I see my worries have been for naught!” Aro said, thoroughly pleased. “Please, come join me, my friends.”

They both sat down on the sofa that was on the other side of the low table. Carlisle could hear faint clinging from the kitchen and strange thumping sounds-

“I must confess I am surprised to see you here so soon, Carlisle.” Aro said, all candid, wide red eyes (he had removed the dark contacts, evidently), “Oh, I knew you would find our humble abode in no time at all, but I am gladdened nonetheless.”

“Aro. Friend. I wanted to thank you for what you did.” Carlisle said and saw how Aro’s bright demeanour dimmed a little, “Truly, I mean this wholeheartedly when I say I am very grateful.”

There were conflicted emotions swirling in his wide scarlet eyes (it was clear he had fed _very_ recently).

“Haven’t we all come across our singers at least once in our long lives?”

“Carlisle hasn’t.” Eleazar smirked from his right. Something small and hard dropped to the floor and rolled for a few moments somewhere deeper in the house. Kitchen, most likely.

“ _Truly?_ ” It looked like this little inconsequential slip of information was quite unexpected for Aro, “I am so sorry, my friend.” Aro said compassionately. “You will find them someday. Fate will put them in your path eventually, of that I have no doubt.”

“Aro…” Carlisle never wanted to meet any of his singers, if they truly existed out there.

“Perhaps then you will understand. Do not waste Fate’s gift, when the time comes, my friend.”

“You must know I would never forgive myself.” Carlisle truthfully said. Why was Aro always trying to turn him to their ‘natural diet’ was a mystery to Carlisle. Aro had seen inside Carlisle’s mind, he would even go as far as to say that Aro _knew his soul_ , then _why_?

“Such compassion for humans.” His friend remarked, amazed. “I have always admired this quality of yours, my friend. For it is so _rare_ , especially among our kind.” A clang softly echoed through the house and an object hit the ground once more.

And a genuinely warm expression overtook his friend’s features. “Have it your way then. But do not fall into despair if the inevitable happens.”

“I-“

“ _OW!_ Fuck! Motherf- _You_ _fucking piece of sh_ \- Goddamnit!” The unmistakable scent of fresh blood, _Bella’s_ very pleasantly flavoured blood hit his olfactory senses.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit.” It sounded as if the girl was in pain. “ _Jesus_.”

Bella had quite the potty mouth on her. He would have never guessed judging by this morning… _Aro must be ecstatic._

“Angel.” Aro said in the same volume as he had been using while talking to them. “Come here.” Any movement or sound from the kitchen stopped. Only her fast breathing and elevated heart rate could be heard. Could the girl have really heard him?

“ _Shit_. _No no no_.” The girl whispered tearfully.

“ _Angel_.” Aro said in the same levelled tone as before, but undeniable hints of concern had sneaked in his voice, “ _Come here_.”

There was some snuffling and sad sighs but her heartbeat was nearing closer to them nevertheless.

The girl emerged from the portal that connected the room to the hallway leading to rooms deeper in the house.

She was wearing a large black T-shirt and loose black yoga pants. Her long hair tied up in a bun. It was now very noticeable that the girl was indeed around seventeen years old. Bella moved soundlessly across the oak hardwood flooring on naked feet, a white kitchen towel wrapped around her left hand, her face pinched in pain and misery. She looked to him and Eleazar, her eyes lingering to Eleazar a beat longer, “Um, Hi.”

“Hello, there.” Eleazar greeted warmly as she came to a stop by Aro’s side.

His friend took her uninjured hand and swiftly pulled the human on his lap.

“I’m so sorry.” Bella said through tears as Aro unwrapped the towel from her left hand. “I was trying to cut the stupid coconut open-”

“Yes, I heard. Slippery fellow.” Aro said and made Bella huff a laugh.

The large cut in the middle of her palm did not look good. It was deep and crossed the palm from the heel to her little finger. She will definitely need stitches.

“I swear I did not mean for this to happen, Aro.” Bella whispered as blood continued to well up from the wound.

“Hush, angel.” Aro sighed heavily and _lifted her bloody palm to his lips_. His friend sucked away the blood that had collected on her palm and licked it perfectly clean. Completely unperturbed by her lovely scented blood. Then he lightly stretched her hand open and more blood spilled from the cut, which he leisurely licked away again, this time squeezing the cut closed.

Aro did it so calmly (although very deftly) as if he had done something like this a hundred times before. And all through this the human sat patiently on Aro’s lap, calmly looking on as a vampire drank her blood. No fear from her, her heart rate perfectly steady.

It was clear as day ( _not the usual sort around here_ ) that this was not the first time Aro had drunk from her. _How_ -

Carlisle could see faint but unmistakeable crescent teeth marks on her left arm above her elbow and-

-and the same paler coloured crescent imprints on the crook of her neck. _How-_

How could this be possible… The marks looked _old._

“Right as rain, angel.” Aro said with a warm smile as he opened her hand and-

-there was no cut on her palm. It had healed completely. In less than five seconds. _How in the seven hells-_

“Thank you, Aro.” The girl _kissed Aro’s cheek_ and _hugged him_.

“Of course, angel.” Bella put her head on his shoulder and Aro pressed a soft kiss to the crown of her head, and wrapped his own arms around the human.

Carlisle. Could not believe what was happening. How many times can a person be shocked in one day, in the span of four hours and retain a sound mind-set?

“What’s the verdict?” the girl asked, gazing into Aro’s scarlet eyes, expectant and completely unbothered by their eldritch appearance.

“You are officially drug free, angel.” Aro announced. “Not a hint of the morphine left.”

“That’s good, right?”

“It is very good, indeed.”

“ _Nice_. Are you…?”

“Later.”

“ _Okay_.” The girl said and a faint blush spread on her skin.

Did they seriously just _mutually_ _agree on_ …

December 23, 2004 was the day the world stopped making sense to doctor Carlisle Cullen.

“…Morphine?” _Anything to grasp at straws of normalcy._

“Isabella? Care to explain?” Aro asked as he started to play with her left hand.

“ _Gosh_ … this is so embarrassing... Um. We stopped in Port Angeles yesterday before coming here and Renata and I went to a bookshop. I tripped over a book that had slipped from my hands and fell down the stairs from the second floor.” Bella said as she looked at him and Eleazar with shy, mortified chocolate eyes, “Broke my left arm, fainted, was taken to the hospital in a fucking ambulance, had my arm set, stitched up and put in a splint and… and… they _st-stabbed a-a **needle** in my arm_ _so they could ad-administer the morphine_.” The girl whispered in a tiny voice, her eyes glazed, looking into a distance, reliving the monstrous trauma of having-

“ _A huge fucking n-needle!_ ”- put into her arm.

How utterly horrifying.

Aro was looking skyward, amusement clear on his face, his lips quivering.

“How _ever_ did you survive the encounter, angel.”

“Luck.” Aro hid his face in her hair.

“You broke your arm _yesterday_?” Carlisle asked, unbelieving.

“Yeah. But Aro made it all better again.” Bella said brightly but at his surely wide eyed stare elaborated, “Um… took the pain away and released his venom so it would heal m-…”

“ _You did **what?!**_ ” Carlisle shouted at Aro who was looking at them with vague interest.

“What’s going on... Is something wrong?” Bella’s eyes jumped from him to Eleazar who was leisurely reclining on the sofa as opposed to Carlisle who was sitting straight and rigid.

“Everything is fine, angel. Carly here is just a tiny bit confused.”

“How is she… still…” Carlisle stammered. “I don’t understand.”

“Friend…” Aro sighed, “It is in our power to change the nature of our venom depending on what we desire for it to accomplish. _If we want to_ , we can heal humans, numb their pain, or make the transformation painless, _among other things_ , just as we can make it so the venom does not sparkle in the sunlight.” His friend finished.

Carlisle had never known about any such thing… only about the _Unsparkling_.

“How- _Why did you not tell me_? Before?” He asked, incredulous and a little bit hurt.

“You were so young, friend.” Aro said as he played with Bella’s hand ( ~~did he even noticed he was doing it?~~ ), “You were not a doctor yet, nor had you started to study medicine. I did not think you would find it that interesting.”

“Why _on earth_ wouldn’t I find it interesting, friend?” Carlisle asked, out of his depth.

“Carly. It takes a lot of practice. _A lot_ of trial and error. Years.” Aro said as he traced Bella’s arm, now that Carlisle knew what to look for, he could see a jagged line of whiter skin on Bella’s forearm.

“I learned how to do it perfectly only after ten years.” Aro admitted, then more quietly, “My… sister. She accomplished it in eight.” Aro’s eyes were full of wistfulness. “We mastered the art so quickly only because we were competing against each other. _Anyway_ … she won.” Aro smiled sorrowfully.

“What was her name?” It was official. The girl was suicidal.

“…Didyme.” His friend breathed and _was there a shiny gleam to Aro’s eyes?_ It was odd seeing Aro talk about his sister. He had never even mentioned her in all the years Carlisle had lived in the Castle, even when Aro had had a bit ~~or a lot~~ too much of wine. He never acknowledged it when anyone of his coven so much as mentioned her or her name. Perhaps because they never dared do it in Aro’s presence.

“Such a beautiful name.”

“Why yes,” Aro laughed and there it was, _the bitter flavour of madness in the air_ , “ _Yes it is_. It means ‘ _the light of a thousand stars_ ’ in my native language.”

It sounded as if Aro still mourned her death. Did he regret killing her? It certainly looked like it. Carlisle had never found out from the Guard or Sulpicia, or Athenodora or Caius (he definitely had not asked Marcus such a thing, Carlisle considered himself a decent person) why Aro had done it. It was still a mystery to him. He was unsure if the Guard themselves knew. As for Caius and the queens, they had shut his inquiries down very promptly.

But it was apparent Aro ~~had~~ loved his sister ardently.

Three of Bella’s heartbeats passed and Aro turned back to Carlisle.

“You could have tried it on your animals of course, but it is not the same. For the same reason why venom does not work on them the same way it works on humans. We do not see any bloodlust crazed immortal moose running around, do we?” Aro said, smirking a little.

“Anyway. You were so averse to human blood. Still are.” Aro gave him a kind smile, “What would the point in telling you be?”

Aro had this way… of making Carlisle fell like a child, sometimes. Similar to parents keeping things from their children they deem not appropriate for their young ears yet. At least it is how Carlisle felt now.

However. He knew now. And it was…

 _Incredible_. Carlisle still could not believe such a thing could be possible. How far did the healing factor reach? And what did Aro mean by ‘ _among other things_ ’?

Carlisle turned to Eleazar. “Did you know?”

“I knew about the pain numbing. I know how to do that. But… not the healing aspect.” Then he looked to Aro speculatively, but it was clear he was intrigued, “Completely painless? The _whole_ transformation? Truly?”

“I admit it is quite tricky to master, but not at all impossible.”

If it indeed was the truth, Bella was a very lucky soon-to-be-vampire.

“How many-” Eleazar started to ask, only for Aro to interrupt him, shifting his eyes to Carlisle, “You do not want to know.”

And wasn’t that just spectacular. _Not deemed safe information for Carlisle’s sensitive ears, indeed_.

Not that he really wanted to know. If Aro did not want to say, the number was probably worse than anything Carlisle had in mind.

“I had no idea.” Carlisle slowly shook his head in astonishment. “May I…?” He nodded to Bella’s arm. The girl’s head snapped to him, then up to Aro’s suddenly unreadable expression. He gave a slight nod and Bella reluctantly slid off his lap and perched beside Carlisle, extending her left arm for him to examine.

Carlisle carefully took her hand and gently felt along the bones of the arm. Judging by the placement of the light ~~scar~~ skin, it should have been the ulna bone that she had broken yesterday.

He could not feel any irregularities or evidence the ulna bone had ever been broken, but-

“You have broken this arm twice before, the radius bone, both times.” Carlisle stated and looked up. Bella was looking at him with widened eyes.

“Yeah. Once when I was six and once when I was eleven.” Carlisle could physically feel Aro’s almost tangible hawk like gaze on him and Bella. Watching, waiting. Ready to pounce on him at every second. It was not a pleasant feeling. _To feel like pray_.

There were no scars, marks – yes, lighter skin – yes, as well, but the once damaged flesh was perfectly smooth. _Incredible. Is this one of the things_ Valerian Inc. _researched? Perhaps implemented in their biotechnologies. Oh, the curiosity was surely killing him._

Carlisle released her arm and slowly reached for the right one, the doctor in him acting on autopilot as he pondered about _Valerian Inc._ \- _the Volturi’ company_. Why would the Volturi found such a company? What reason could they possibly have? What had they discovered? There must have been something that had never (or will never) reach the eyes of mere mortals. Did they study vampire biology as well? Oh, the possibilities… _Carlisle wanted in on that_.

Was that the reason Alice and Edward had not said anything to him? Did Alice see something that would involve the Volturi, if Carlisle was made aware of the fact the Italian coven were the true owners of _Valerian In-_

Carlisle’s head shot up and he looked searchingly into Bella’s eyes.

“Both the radius and the ulna have been previously broken, the radius quite severely.” Carlisle stated. “A spiral fracture to your wrist as well.”

“Um…” The girl shifted uncomfortably and jerked her hand out of his hold. “I broke it pretty bad when I fell out of the second floor window of my bedroom. When I was eight. The other break was at thirteen, I fell while ice-skating. Stupid idea.” The girl did not appear to be lying. _This time._ But-

“Oh, don’t look at me like that! My parents _did not abuse me_.” The girl practically hissed.

Carlisle had heard the same words fall from the lips of so many women and children over the years he had been a doctor. ‘ _I walked into a door_ ’, ‘ _I fell down the stairs_ ’, ‘ _a dog tripped me_ ’, and Carlisle’s absolute favourite ~~( **not** )~~ – clumsiness. Most of the time they lied, to protect their abusers, who were most often their boyfriends or husbands or their parents, or to not escalate the already bad situation, when they eventually had to return to the toxic environment, in which they were trapped in.

“God, you are just like all the rest of those ER doctors. After my skating accident, the doctor who set my arm almost got the CPS involved. The only reason he didn’t was because my dad’s a cop.” Carlisle’s eyes shot to Aro, who was following their conversation silently, but it did not seem this was news to him. Great. Her father was a police officer or a detective or an agent or _a something_. Who will probably be looking for her. _Doggedly_ and _persistently_. He should have checked if there wasn’t an Amber Alert out for her already.

“I’m just a klutz. Okay?” the girl huffed. Flustered. “I cannot help it.” And there it was, the famed lame ‘ _I’m such a klutz, doctor_ ’ excuse.

Carlisle wanted to believe her. He really did. Plus, the coconut accident spoke in her favour. But-

“You never said how your wrist got broken.” Her heart skipped a beat and started to race a little faster.

“I was doing yoga.” The girl said looking to her wrist, which she had lightly encircled in her left palm, “they never warn you about how dangerous it can actually be.”

She jumped to her feet ~~way too~~ deftly _~~(the girl was so very light on her feet, Carlisle had a hard time imagining her being as clumsy as she implied)~~_ and headed for the portal.

“I’m hungry. I think I’ll brew some coffee. And I have a fucking coconut to crack open before Renata returns…”

And the girl disappeared through the portal.

Carlisle slowly turned back to his friend, who did not look happy, most probably because the girl had lied and because it appeared someone had indeed broken her wrist.

Loud clinking of metal and sharp smashing sounds rang from the kitchen. _The cut on Bella’s palm was being avenged with a vengeance._

“Eleazar, I believe you have had plenty of time to work your magic.” Aro smiled, abandoning the previous issue completely. Carlisle supposed it did not matter one way or another, anymore. Because Bella will never return home again.

“Where did you _find_ her?” Eleazar asked in amazement.

“San Francisco airport.” Aro smirked. “She walked right through Renata’s shield as if it was not there. _Completely oblivious_.”

“ _Dios mío_.” Eleazar whispered, awed. Well. Given what they all witnessed just a few hours ago, Carlisle could admit it seemed like an impossible feat.

“How about you, Aro? Can you see anything?”

An elated, crazed gleam began shining in his friend’s eyes, “Nothing. I cannot see anything from her. I have _never_ been able to _not see_. I fear it is driving me a little mad.”

“Aro, you were already mad when I met you. You don’t get to blame _me_.” Bella commented from the kitchen in a humour laced voice, which made Aro burst into giggles.

“How very true.” Aro grinned. “Now, my friend, what can you tell me?”

“Not much, Aro. If I had met her in _an airport_ , I would have thought she did not possess any potential for a gift at all. However, I do know better now. I can’t get anything as she is blocking me, constantly. _You_ on the other hand remind me of a _cocktail_.” Eleazar smirked.

“A cocktail! Nobody has _ever_ called me _that_ before!” Aro laughed, “And I have been called _many_ things.”

“Then I’m delighted to be your first, Aro.” Eleazar grinned.

“ _Are you now?_ ” Aro drawled looking up at Eleazar from below his lashes, “ _I_ would be delighted to be _your_ first, dear Eleazar.” And there was a wicked grin on Aro’s face.

“I tried, once, and lost an eye trying to get past Renata’s rooms.” Eleazar said and Aro burst into full on cackles. “I am not sure it was not your plan all along, Master.”

“ _I saw_. I remember now.” Aro said between bouts of laughter. “You should have tried harder, dear Eleazar.”

“And lose more than my eye? Oh no, I received the message loud and clear.”

“Which was?”

“Never to trust a word that comes out of your mouth, Master.”

“I had thought you would have received this message a very long time ago, dear Eleazar.”

“I have yet to forgive you for that mission.” Eleazar said, shaking his head, but there was a faint smile on his lips all the same.

“I thought it would prove to be quite educational to you.” Aro remarked, grinning evilly.

“Oh, _it was_. I would _love_ to show you some of the things I learned from those succu-”

“What are you talking about.”

“ _Gaah!_ ” Poor Eleazar. The girl had pulled on him the same thing she had done to Esme.

Carlisle had involuntary jumped in his seat himself.

Eleazar, the poor sod, had leapt to his feet and stared at the girl, flabbergasted.

The girl had _got to stop doing this_ if she did not want to end up dead and unknowingly take them with her.

Aro, the bastard, was clearly having fun.

Bella went to sit next to Aro with what looked like an 800 millilitre mug of coffee (which _could_ _not_ be healthy for her, by any standards) in one hand and a bowl containing coconut flesh in the other.

“Twice in one day, Carly!” His friend appeared thoroughly entertained, then a thoughtful expression clouded his features, “Is this the consequence of your diet, friends?”

“May this be an example to you, Isabella, of what happens to the golden eyed vampires.”

“Humans being able to sneak up on them?” Bella was smirking at them with wide eyes while she munched on the raw coconut.

“Exactly, love.”

“ _How are you doing this?_ ” Eleazar asked, flummoxed. “You shouldn’t be able to… _sneak up on us!_ ”

“It’s one of the side effects of the venom Aro _conveniently_ forgot to mention when I asked about it before he-”

“Angel, you cannot possibly be displeased about this. You might even give your ballerina career another go now, my Odette.”

“Your Odile, more like, as I would be liable to eating all the other swans by the end of Act Three.”

“My Black Swan.” Aro gazed at her with darkening eyes. _Good God._

Carlisle loudly cleared his throat.

“…One of the side effects? What other side effects have you experienced?” Carlisle asked. _Anything to… stop whatever that just was. ~~His poor, poor eyes.~~_

“Um… Well, there is the crazy improvement to my balance. I can’t understand how I had not broken my neck with just how bad it was before. Hmm… I can hear much better now.” Bella closed her eyes for a few seconds and seemed to be concentrating on something. “I can tell someone is clearing snow off their driveway around nine hundred metres to the east of us, and a car is approaching from the Olympic Highway, about two miles out from us, and… _is that a dog running after it through the woods_?” Bella’s eyes shot open and looked at their flabbergasted expressions because the girl got everything right, except the man who was clearing the snow was eight hundred and fifty metres from them.

“It most certainly sounds like a four legged canine, my Odile.” Aro bit his lip in entertainment. “You were almost correct.”

“Oh?” The girl deflated a little.

“Our neighbour is _eight_ hundred and fifty metres from our location.” _And the girl smacked Aro’s shoulder. Had she any ide-_

“Ugh! You can be so… _infuriating_ sometimes.” But Aro just laughed silently, clearly unbothered by her behaviour.

“Hmm… My vision’s so much sharper now, plus I can see in the dark now.” _What_. “Scared the hell out of me this morning.”

“And I am _so hungry_ … I hope it is Renata’s car which is approaching.” And indeed, all the coconut was gone from the bowl. As was the coffee. _When had the child managed to finish it all?_

“Well. The last thing I can think of right now is that I had this weird feeling back at your house that something awful was going to happen.” Bella shifted closer to Aro, “Maybe it was a one-time thingy.”

“Perhaps… How _is_ young Edward faring?” Aro asked.

“He left for Norway this afternoon.” Carlisle informed him.

“… _Norway_.” Aro slowly repeated.

“Yes, we thought it would be for the best if he stayed with Tanya and her sisters for a while. They are quite fond of him.”

“How… delightful.”

The vehicle stopped by the front door. And a moment later Renata walked inside the room, two full bags of something (food most likely) in her arms.

Bella shot to her feet and too quickly for a mere human appeared by Renata’s side.

“ _Oh My God_. _I love you, Renata!_ Thank you! I would totally kiss you right now but I’ve been _dying_ from hunger.” The girl easily snatched the no doubt too heavy bags out of Renata’s arms and disappeared through the portal with her loot.

“…At least she said thanks.” Renata grumbled as she sat down beside Aro and fully focused on them. “Hey, Eleazar!” Renata said in a syrupy tone of voice.

“Renata.” Eleazar’s countenance became apprehensive.

“If I had known you would come here I wouldn’t have left Aro’s side.” Renata glared daggers at Eleazar. _What._ Then she glanced into Carlisle’s eyes with her beautiful cherry ones, “At least there was Carlisle to chaperone.”

“I assure you, darling, my virtue remains unblemished.” Aro informed with a faint smile on his lips. _What._

“I truly hope so, for the sake of Casanova here. Otherwise _dear Eleazar_ would have to find out if an eye can grow back for a second time.”

“They were flirting with each other before I interrupted them.” Bella helpfully ratted them out from the kitchen.

Renata narrowed her eyes dangerously at Carlisle and threw a downright murderous glare at Eleazar.

“I wonder if your cock would grow back as well, _dear Eleaza_ -” Eleazar momentarily leaned back as far away from her as the sofa allowed.

“ _Renata!_ ” Aro exclaimed _seemingly_ scandalised and had covered his mouth with his hand.

“ _Jesus Christ_.” Carlisle was officially done. “I can’t believe I am hearing this conversation.”

“May I remind you that I am happily married, Renata?” Eleazar asked but to Carlisle’s professional hazard of detecting low grade bullshit if he wanted to or not it sounded like a feeble excuse.

“I remember you being happily married in 1947 as well, _slut_.” Renata spat at Eleazar.

Carlisle heard a gasp from the portal, where Bella was standing and had pressed her free hand (which was not holding a glass bowl of cashew nuts) over her mouth, a look of shocked astonishment on her face.

Carlisle could not believe this was happening.

“Darling Renata, there is no need for name calling.” Aro tried to placate her.

“I see you are still the same crazy bitch as before, _darling Renata_.”

“ _Hijo de puta_ -”

“Enough!”

Aro did not look happy.

“ _Vi comportate entrambi come bambini_.” Aro was utterly unamused.

“ _Mi dispiace, Padrone_.” Renata sounded genuinely ashamed.

“ _Perdonami_ _,_ _Padrone_.” Eleazar said, thoroughly despondent himself.

His friend then turned to Bella who appeared to be quite stunned by what she had witnessed, just as Carlisle was himself.

“I apologise you had to witness this… little quarrel between **_old friends_** , angel.”

“I. Don’t worry, Aro. I’ve heard worse.” _Which was such a reassurance._

Aro heavily sighed and looked to Carlisle next.

“Carlisle, this was not what I had envisioned when I invited you over to _catch up_.”

“I, too, have heard much worse, old friend.” Carlisle tried to assure.

“Even if it is so...” Aro trailed off. Then he looked to Renata, a question in his crimson eyes to which Renata smiled a small, _evil_ smirk and nodded her head. A slow, sadistic answering grin stretched on his friends lips. It was uncanny how they seemed to hold a full conversation just by looking into each other’s eyes.

Two seconds later, they turned back to Eleazar and Carlisle, expressions completely cordial ( _well,_ _at least Aro’s was_ ).

Bella had joined the Volturis and sat on Aro’s other side, the large bowl of cashews in her hands.

“And you wonder why there are rumours…” Eleazar muttered under his breath.

Aro, of course, acted as if he had heard nothing.

There was another reason why Carlisle had wanted to see Aro as soon as possible, not just to thank him for letting Edward continue on with his ~~misguided~~ existence. Or sating his curiosity about the girl. Or discussing _Valerian Inc_. Although it seemed as if that will have to wait for a more appropriate time.

“How long are you planning on staying here, friends?” Carlisle asked as kindly and genially as he could manage.

“Oh! We have not yet decided. In all likelihood the whole Christmas. Perhaps a little longer. It is very beautiful here, my friend. I had wondered why you would choose to secret yourself away to this unassuming nook of the world, but I believe I understand your reasoning now, myself.” Aro gushed excitedly. His enthusiasm was so… _endearing_.

“Would you want to explore the peninsula, darlings?” Aro asked joyously, “See Olympic National Park, the ocean…” That was… _a very bad idea_. Not that Carlisle could say that aloud.

He coughed, “The ocean?”

“Why yes, I had a wonderful conversation with the nice sommelier who recommended this house to me about the most noteworthy landmarks of the Olympic Peninsula and he recommended Olympic National Park and Ruby Beach. Apart from Lake Crescent, of course.” Carlisle could feel tension seep out of him and hoped it didn’t show.

“I can only agree, my friend.”

“What do you say? Renata? _Odette_?”

“It’s _Odile_ , mister,” Bella corrected with a smirk, “Actually, I would love to see the beach. How about you, Renata?”

“Oh, of course. I would love to take some pictures. They are bound to turn out spectacular.”

“Then it is decided! How wonderful!” Aro was visibly thrilled by their newly made Christmas holiday plans.

“Aro?” Bella asked in a somewhat cautious voice.

“Yes, Odile?”

“Can we go to a church on Christmas Eve, too? I love listening to live performances of Christmas carols, it’s a tradition, you see.” Carlisle just took this all in stride, he was quite certain that nothing could shock him anymore for his limit had long since been breached. He just was… not capable of processing any more insanity today. It might be a psychological defence mechanism he had no knowledge of possessing until this very day.

Carlisle could see how Renata was taking deep, even albeit shaky breaths through her mouth and trying very hard to overcome her evident urge to laugh her head off. Eleazar had frozen, and Carlisle did not need to have Jasper’s gift to feel the sheer bafflement radiating from him in crushing waves.

“… Of course, angel. I would not want you to break a tradition. There are quite a number of churches in Port Angeles. At least one of them should have a choir singing carols on Christmas Eve.” Carlisle could actually see flames of wicked merriment dancing in his eyes as he looked to Bella’s beaming face.

“Oh, thank you so much, Aro! I can’t wait! You are coming along with us, right, Renata?” Bella cheerfully asked but Carlisle could now see that the little menace knew exactly what she was doing. _How could he have ever thought the girl innocent?_

“I… wouldn’t miss it for the world, Odile.” Renata shook her head and looked to Bella with some sort of acknowledgement and _was that a trace of budding admiration in her eyes as well_?

However, Carlisle was rapidly coming to the conclusion that Renata was a menace in her own right, because-

“Churches are such beautiful architectural wonders. I cannot wait to immortalize the event with my camera.” Aro had closed his eyes, his sharp teeth biting his lower lip, jaw trembling, as Renata kept on talking, “The wondrous Christian temple with _you,_ Odile and me in front of it, gazing up at its magnificence in awe… _you,_ Odile and I, sitting on one of the long benches and listening to a children’s choir singing Christmas carols inside the church’s blessed walls… crosses and sacred images of saints _everywhere_ … ”

“I have no doubt that everyone back home will _love_ to see how we had spent our Christmas holidays.” Renata wistfully sighed.

“…You will make a fortune, my sweet darling Renata.” Aro eventually said with a light smile, gazing up to the crystal chandelier that hung above their heads.

Bella was happily munching on the cashews.

Eleazar had hidden his face behind his palms.

 _Carlisle would very much like to see those pictures himself_.

“I’m sure you will have fun, friends.” Carlisle quipped _. He could not help himself. He just had to_.

Then he sobered up and brought up another reason for wanting to speak with Aro as soon as possible, “…I must ask you to not hunt in Forks and its surrounding area, friends. It is a very small community, even a few missing persons would draw unwanted attention-”

“Oh, you do not need to worry yourself over this, my friend. We would not want to cause you any inconvenience or trouble by disrupting your peaceful stay here in this lovely dark corner of the world you have found for yourself, Carly.” Thank God-

“Besides, Renata and I already had dinner in Port Angeles yesterday.” Aro smiled at him, “Renata might want to have something before we leave in a week or two but I’m good for another month.”

“That is good to hear-”

“After all, so few Native Americans come to Italy and even less of them end up visiting the Castle…” Aro said with a dreamy expression and Carlisle felt his venom run dry in his undead veins, “…it has been some time since I’ve had such a delicious dinner _for she was simply_ _wonderf_ \- oh, forgive me, Carly, Eleazar. You probably do not want to hear this.” Aro trailed off, apology imbedded in his voice.

Carlisle found he could not form words. What were the chances that it had been some _other_ _Native American_ than one from the Quileute tribe?

“There really is no reason for worry, Carlisle.” Renata pleasantly added. “Just as Aro said. I had a nice gentlemen for dinner the other night just outside the City of Port Angeles. Mr Newton did not feel a thing.”

“…Mr Newton? Mr… _Thomas…_ Newton?”

“Why yes, he did introduce himself as Thomas. Oh my. Was he your friend? I would never forgive myself if I had eaten a friend of yours, Carlisle!” Renata appeared very distraught.

“He… wasn’t my friend. But… I knew him. He is- …was a very well-known figure in Forks. And my… former patient.”

“Perhaps it was a different Thomas Newton?” Renata asked, hopeful. “Peppermint scent, blond hair, blue eyes, tall, wore glasses, _a wedding ring_ … had a Californian accent?” Carlisle could only nod his head in recognition.

“Oh. I am so very sorry, Carlisle! I did not know. Truly. Port Angeles is quite a ways from your little town.” Renata finished sadly. “ _How was I to know?_ ”

“Shh, darling. These things just happen. It was Fate, darling.” Aro consoled her. “You understand, do you, Carlisle?”

“I…” It was much too late for Mr Newton now, wasn’t it? “Of course.”

“We are truly sorry, my friend. I promise there will not be another missing person in Forks or it’s vicinity other than Mr Newton while we stay here.” Aro assured him.

“I… I’m glad, Aro.” Carlisle managed to get out. _Please, God, let it not be a Quileute that Aro had eaten._ _Please_.

Carlisle looked out through the glass façade facing Lake Crescent and had to admit that the view really was to die for. Twilight had descended and stars could be seen in the dark blue sky, most likely one of the last clear nights they will have for a while, if not _the_ last one.

“Can I treat you to a glass of wine, Carlisle, Eleazar?” Aro offered, “I asked darling Renata to purchase some for me.”

“I’m so very sorry, Master. It must have slipped my mind.” Renata said apologetically.

“Renata…” Aro heavily sighed.

“Very well… there are quite a few bottles here in the cellar as well. The Sinclairs were more than happy to give me full rein on their wine collection. I have a suspicion I might have added a couple of zeros more to what they had expected for a fortnight for this lodge when I wired the payment to their account…” Aro thought aloud and Renata looked like she wanted to strangle his old friend.

 _God. **Aro** and **wine** and **Carlisle** were not a great combination, in any circumstances_.

“I would love to share a bottle of wine with y-” _Really, Eleazar?_ Carlisle was starting to see for himself where Renata was coming from.

“I’m sorry, old friend, but I have a night shift at the hospital in-” Carlisle looked to his watch, “- fifty minutes.” Aro looked disappointed but understanding.

“Oh. I understand, Carly. Another time, perhaps?” Aro asked hopefully.

“Of course. And I still want to have that conversation about your company’s work.”

“Oh, definitely. Text me your email address and I will send over some of the research we have done and a few of the projects that are still ongoing. It might answer some of your questions _and then some_ and allow for a much more thrilling discussion, later.” Aro looked to him with excitement in his crimson eyes and Carlisle believed he was speaking genuinely, from his very soul.

Carlisle made quick work of texting Aro his email and his friend’s Blackberry lit up just as a ping sounded through the room.

“Thank you, Aro.”

“Think nothing of it.”

Carlisle stood and a beat later Eleazar reluctantly did the same. _Jesus_.

“Well. It was a pleasure to see you again, Renata, B-”

“Ours as well, Carlisle!” Renata cheerfully said as she leapt to her feet and pressed a kiss to each of his cheeks.

Carlisle could not help but smile at her and at Bella.

“Bye, Carlisle!” Bella said from the sofa, smiling warmly. He must have been forgiven for earlier, it seemed. Then she looked to Eleazar with a blank look. “Farewell, Eleazar.”

“ _Odile_.” Eleazar tightly acknowledged.

Aro flew to his feet as well and joined them.

“I will see you to the door.” And Aro lead them through the hallway and the foyer to the glass door. They stepped out on the patio.

Aro’s gloves had magically appeared on his hands and Carlisle suddenly found himself enveloped in a tender but tight embrace by his friend, which he immediately returned. “Goodbye, Carly.” Aro whispered, his head resting on Carlisle’s shoulder for a moment.

“Aro, you all are more than welcome to visit us again as long as you stay here. Esme would love to give you that tour. Please, do.”

“We will.” Aro released him, took a step back and winked to Eleazar, “Safe travels, my friends.”

“Master.” Carlisle could sense Eleazar was disappointed he had not gotten a hug as well. _Lovely._

With one more parting glance to Aro, who was still standing on the patio, Carlisle and Eleazar got into the car and drove off, a pair of glowing canine eyes shining in the car's headlights a hundred metre distance away into the woods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my. This is a long one. 
> 
> Carlisle’s a bit slow, don’t you think? But he should have that light-bulb moment. Eventually.
> 
> So many of you commented that you can’t wait for the next chapter and all I could think at the time was…  
> THERE IS NO NEXT CHAPTER. 😈 I’m awful, I know.
> 
>  _Anyhow_. I hope you enjoyed this one.
> 
> _Cariño (Spanish)_ \- Darling
> 
>  _Afortunado hijo de puta! (Spanish)_ \- You lucky bastard!
> 
>  _Lo siento (Spanish)_ \- I’m sorry
> 
>  _Querido Dios del cielo (Spanish)_ \- Good Heavens
> 
>  _Dios Santo (Spanish)_ \- Good God
> 
>  _Yo sé, amigo. (Spanish)_ \- I know, friend.
> 
>  _Dios mío (Spanish)_ \- My God
> 
>  _Vi comportate entrambi come bambini. (Italian)_ \- You are both acting like children.
> 
>  _Mi dispiace, Padrone. (Italian)_ \- I’m sorry, Master.
> 
>  _Perdonami, Padrone. (Italian )_ \- Forgive me, Master.
> 
>   
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	13. There is no gravity

_17:30 p.m., December 23, 2004, Sinclair Lodge House by Lake Crescent_

Aro returned from escorting their guests out, to find that darling Renata was the only one in the living room.

Isabella’s heart was beating in the kitchen.

Evidently she had reached the limit of her hunger endurance which had previously been suffered through snacks while keeping company to their guests. (It was one of few harmless side effects that sometimes accompanied excessive amount of vampire venom inside human bodies.

Not that it was a cause for worry. It was a clear consequence of her human body using up its energy reserves for healing her injuries earlier. As well as for the emergence of her unique enhancements. It was nothing bad, but it did seem her hunger was extremely pronounced. Nevertheless, Aro was certain it will lessen and disappear completely when her body finished adapting to the alien substance in her blood.

Darling Renata had moved to the sofa Carlisle and Eleazar had occupied moments ago and was lying on it like a cliché of a patient on their weekly psychiatrist appointment.

Aro sat down on the other sofa, the one he had apparently claimed as his own for however long they will call this modest abode their home.

“ _Lui è ancora qui_.” Darling Renata stated the obvious. Her eyes were closed.

If they were stating the obvious now, he might as well play along.

“ _Sì, lo è_.” In any case, it was true.

“ _He has been following me since I drove past Patrick’s shop on my way to the city’s centre, before going to the much nicer supermarket which had been closed during the night._ ” Darling Renata drawled with still closed eyes.

“ _The dog dogged me throughout the whole supermarket. Spying on me_.”

“ _Have you any idea how utterly excruciating it was to fake not noticing him staring at me the entire time? He was wearing ripped shorts and a purple fucking polo shirt. No shoes. Abhorrent fashion sense aside, even the humans were staring at the stupid dog. It’s the dead of winter, for Christ’s sake! And the smell! Sweet Mary, Mother of Jesus, have you any idea how disgusting those mutts reek!?_ ” Renata finally opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him with indignation.

“ _And how did that make you feel?_ ” Aro asked Renata in a neutral, deep cadence, his palms clasped together under his chin.

 _“I felt like gagging, Aro!_ ” Renata harshly spat.

“ _Then he proceeded to run after the car all the way from Port Angeles. With the offending piece of cloth pretending to be shorts clenched in his teeth, flapping on his muzzle’s sides in tandem with his gallops._ ”

“ _You don’t say_.” Aro said with vague amusement. He had seen _some_ things in Miss Young’s mind. But the girl had an admirable inclination to guard her sanity from the more… unusual side of the practicalities shifters had to live through, so he did not know _everything_.

“ _Do you want to know where the purple polo shirt was at in all this freak show, Master?_ ”

“ _I’m afraid to ask, darling_.”

“ _Strapped to his right hip and hind leg, Aro!_ ”

Aro put his palms together and placed them in front of his lips, partially hiding his smile.

“ _Very original_ _…_ ” Aro remarked in glowing admiration. “ _Very unorthodox…_ ” Aro passionately enunciating the words as he sucked in deep, fervid breaths, “ _the pure genius of it, Renata!_ ”

“ _Tell me about it. I will have to live with the image for the rest of my life. As will you, Master, the next time you touch me._ ” Darling Renata threatened him. “ _See if you’ll laugh then_.”

“ _Darling. The things I have seen in the minds of others… I doubt the dog’s solution to their inconvenient loss of clothing when in their alternate form could ever be of any grief to my eyes_.”

“ _I cannot understand how you haven’t gone completely mad from everything you must have seen, Master_.”

“… _I had, darling. In those first years after my turning. Before I figured out how to shield my fractured mind_.” His friend was doing a wonderful attempt of appearing unaffected by his admission, but he could see his words had saddened her immensely. “ _I fear I have never been able to repair it fully. By now I have come to accept some of the initial damage is beyond help_.”

“ _Master Aro_ …” Renata shifted in a sitting position on the sofa, her eyes glistening.

“ _Do not feel sad about this, Renata. It is what it is. I’m fine, am I not?_ ” Aro preened, his eyes flirtatiously watching Renata, and succeeded in luring out a strangled laugh from his friend.

“ _You are, Master. And I wouldn’t have you any other way._ ” Renata said with conviction, her eyes fierce. What had he ever done to warrant such devotion? He did not know.

“ _You are too kind, my dear._ ”

“ _Not kind…_ ” she whispered, giving him one last intense look, before she flipped down on the sofa and closed her eyes. “ _Anyway._ _What do you want to do with him? I’m more than up to kick a puppy_.”

“ _I think we could… give him a bit more time to leave on his own terms.”_ Aro decided thoughtfully. _“If he is still here after a few hours… you are free to… kick him as hard as you want, darling._ ”

“ _Thank you, Master_.”

“ _Have you ever eaten a psychiatrist?_ ” Darling Renata mused.

“ _I have not_.”

“ _Maybe you should_.”

“ _I doubt it would be of any use, darling_.”

“ _You never know, Master_.”

“ _I have seen the human mind in all its unabridged glory hundreds of thousands of times. I doubt any psychiatrist has ever had a broader perspective of the phenomenon than I_.”

“ _How do you deal with it?_ ”

“ _I… have built cities for the minds I see inside my own. Their memories live on in these… cities. I visit, sometimes, when I need or… want… to recall a particular memory. Or if I need to find an answer that is on the tip of my tongue, for I know I have seen it, at least once in one of the minds I have… made copies of._ ” Renata had turned her head in his direction and opened her eyes, which had become bigger and bigger, as he continued to talk.

“ _Don’t you get lost sometimes?_ ” Renata whispered.

“ _That possibility always remains_.” He smiled to himself. “ _But **I** built them. I cannot get lost inside them. Not properly, at least. Fate knows I have tried._”

“ _Why would you do such a thing, Master?_ ”

“ _My family. I can only visit them there now. My sister. My Darling. My… other children_.” He could feel venom rise in his eyes once more. There was a pattern he had noticed in the past few months. He had found himself incapable of denying darling Renata anything. She would ask and he would answer her. Truthfully. Promise her anything. It was becoming rather inconvenient if he went as far as to mention ~~his other ch~~. **No**.

“ _I do not wish to speak about this anymore_.”

“ _Of course, Master._ ” Renata quietly whispered. “ _Forgive me_.”

“ _You are forgiven, darling_.” Aro felt himself smile with his eyes. “ _Did you really not buy any wine for me? You promised you would_.”

“ _I bought you **one** bottle of 1987_ _Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir. The Vineyard’s in Oregon, not far from Portland. Quite close to this place. There’s even a bird on the label_.” Darling Renata smirked.

“ _Excellent. Thank you, dear._ ” 1987. Just as he had wanted.

“ _I met your Patrick, Master. He was very sweet_.” The corners of his friend’s lips curved up.

“ _Dearest_ …”

“ _I’m joking, Master. He asked how we had settled in the lodge, if everything was well. I think he regretted asking after I wouldn’t shut up for ten minutes straight about how I loved this place but he just kept fondly and patiently listening to me. Such a nice man. Wished my uncle, my sister and me a Very Merry Christmas, can you believe it!_ ” Renata cheerfully finished.

“ _I do, he is a very kind soul._ ”

Aro could hear Isabella making dinner for herself. Pasta with homemade marinara sauce. How Italian of her.

The dog had moved over to the bank of the lake, right by the water, so that he could see inside the house through the windows past the edge of the north-east wall.

Aro had taken time to subtly observe the Quileute wolf when he had seen Carlisle and Eleazar off.

Seeing the shifter through his own eyes, not Miss Young’s, had only cemented the observation about the unnatural appearance of the fur. In Sam’s case it was too black and the eyes too aware, and the form the magic had gifted the Quileutes with was too large for any ordinary wolf.

Sam Uley's wolf form truthfully looked nothing like those of the Children of the Moon. They were not cursed, like the Moon’s Children. Magic had given his tribe a boon. To Aro, it was unmistakeable. He would recognise Magic’s blessing anywhere. However, it did not change the fact that they were vampires’ natural enemies.

Aro could appreciate the Quileute tribe’s ancestor’s success in levelling the odds and giving them fair chance of defending their people.

It was apparent, however, that whoever of their ancestors had called upon Magic for assistance had not been even close to the unimaginable skill, ruthless intent, sheer conviction and single minded focus to bargain with Magic, _to convince_ _Magic Herself_ to bestow them immortal life by changing them into superior beings. _That_ had been as of yet an unparalleled feat.

Aro had a theory that whoever had been responsible for the existence of vampires had been **desperate**. They did not seem to have cared about other humans one bit. Not uncommon. But they had not been disheartened in the least by how many human lives they would end as vampires.

And what possible reason could someone have had for wanting to live forever? After all, all humans will die. It was an incontrovertible truth of the universe. No one lives for forever. If you are born, you will die. Yet another thing many humans did not like to think about.

But nobody could escape their Fate. Not even vampires. Even if they were ~~immortal~~. _Conditionally immortal_. Aro knew he will die one day, as will any other vampire.

Nevertheless, his personal favourite pet theory was that the exceptionally capable and desperate person _or persons_ (this was the most realistic hypothesis - that it had been a group effort. There was power in numbers, after all) had been the last of a prolific culture and for some reason had come to the unfortunate conclusion that all that accumulated, invaluable knowledge of their civilisation would die with the last few of their people.

It would bring the strongest of men to their knees to comprehend the devastating truth that with the last of them the memory of their people, their _world_ would die for All Of Time. Forgotten. Erased. _As if they had never been_.

_The bottomless guilt so heavy, the abyss of crushing despair so deep._

The viciousness to not let this inevitability come to pass…

_It fit._

It fit so very well.

(Of course, Aro could always turn out to be wrong.)

Taking into consideration the major characteristics of their kind – the immortality (which would mean, ideally, forever living persons still in possession of the knowledge they had not been willing to allow to be erased from reality, for it to _cease to exist_ ), the superior mental capabilities, especially vampires’ memory (which would ensure these first vampires would not forget anything in their very long lives), the superior bodies – strength, speed, durability, senses (what use was immortality, if they could be killed as easily as the next human?), the ability to create more beings like them to pass their biggest treasure onto someone else so that even more people could be taught and would _know_ , thus ensuring their culture’s memory would not be forgotten, ever?

If the first vampires had indeed been the last of a few survivors of a dying civilization, Aro had no difficulty to imagine they would not care about such a thing as the blood of others.

They had been willing to pay the price. Any price.

One thing Aro would dearly want to know was whether these first vampires had been successful in retaining the memories of their human lives. All that for which they had damned fellow human beings.

Given how minimal vampires’ recall of their human lives was most of the time… But one should never forget the iron wills these beings, which had become the first of the Undead, must have possessed to accomplish… _this_. One should never discount the force that was pure devotion. They could have retained their memories. It was possible.

 _However_.

He could not decide. _For he did not **know**_.

Magic had surely asked for something of equal value in return. Nothing was free in this world. Had they succeeded, or had Magic taken from them that, which they had held most dear above all else?

“… _ne?_ ”

Aro craved for this knowledge very much.

He had never met any vampire who could shine light on this matter. But he had not met many older than himself. Even in his first years. This was a mystery. _The Mystery_.

“… _adrone?_ ”

Perhaps someday he would meet one of the Original Immortals.

“ _Aro!_ ” Renata called loudly.

Aro focused back on darling Renata, who was watching him very intently with a considerable amount of worry.

“ _Yes, darling?_ ”

“… _Where did you go?_ ” Her voice was dry as desert sand.

“ _Nowhere, dear. I’m right here_.”

“ _You… worry me_.”

“ _There is no need, dearest_.”

“ _I know you must know this already, Master, but **I love you**_. _I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you_.” Darling Renata said with her heart bared open. Her voice was riddled with nearly imperceptible tremors. Aro had known this. Of course he had known this. However, even her mind fully open to him, he could never understand _why_. What made darling Renata love someone like _him_? To this extent? It was another Mystery.

“ _I know, dearest. I… apologise. I should not have drifted off like that_.”

“ _Please_. _What is wrong, Master?_ ”

“ _I do not know, myself. But it will pass, dearest. It always does. Eventually_.”

“ _If you are sure_.” Renata did not look convinced, but gave him the benefit of doubt, the dear soul.

Aro could hear his angel slurping on spaghetti noodles. It should not sound so adorable, _surely_. 

“ _Will **you** drink wine with me, dearest?_” Aro invited. _Please, say yes_. _Say yes, say yes say yes say yes s-_

“ _Do I look like your drinking buddy, Aro?_ ” Renata dryly asked.

“ _My drinking buddy is in Italy, dearest. I know you do not mind the wine, yourself_.” He remarked, mirthfully. Renata could be such a stubborn little thing sometimes. She **did not approve** of his drinking, so she would not indulge him more than the barest minimum, such as bringing him only one bottle instead of the four he had asked for.

“ _Goodness gracious, Master! The shit Marcus gave you for it! I still cannot believe that happened_.” Renata sighed happily and a pleased and _cosy_ smile found its way on her lovely features.

“ _I confess I was quite surprised myself. However, I was also quite intoxicated at the time of his… Epic Dressing Down. I fear the memory is quite foggy_ …”

“ _You just don’t want to remember!_ ” Renata laughed. “ _In any case, it is one of my favourite memories._ ”

Isabella soundlessly entered the room on unclad feet and with a very large cup of hot chocolate, barely glanced at them and went to sit on the cushioned window seat right by the glass façade. She leaned her back against the pillow which she put between her back and the wall and lifted her feet up on the cushion, bending her knees.

Then she looked outside the window to the lake, paying them no mind.

His angel appeared to be unhappy. Aro found he did not like that. 

“ _And who kicked **her** puppy?_” Renata asked as she too undoubtedly observed the human’s gloomy disposition.

“ _I do not know, Renata_.”

“ _Perhaps she is simply coming to terms with the turn her Fate has taken?_ ”

“ _Perhaps._ ” Aro absentmindedly replied as he looked at his melancholy human staring through the window to the lake. “ _…I do not believe everything was well at her home_.”

“ _Oh? Why would you think so?_ ”

“ _Darling. Why wouldn’t I think so?_ ”

Renata seemed to run through mental leaps for a few moments, a frown marring her lovely face.

“ _You are right. Something really wasn’t fine there_.”

“ _No matter. She will never return there._ ”

All those broken bones. _And concussions_ , if his angel could be believed (it struck Aro that when his angel will become a vampire, there will be no quickening of her heart, no too fast or loud inhales or withholdings of her breath to betray her, if she was lying. She will be the only person in the entire world who could possibly, _truly_ lie to him. He will never be able to _know_ her, not fully. Not like he could know any other person. It made him very conflicted. He will never see her deepest thoughts, her most guarded secrets. The things that had shaped her into the person she is now. But he also loved that about his angel. She was another mystery he had no way of solving. It made him dizzy, just thinking about it. For _he had to know_. _He had to_. Aro could feel the curiosity slowly killing him, but he could not _stop_ … wondering).

And those were just the things she had revealed, the broken bones of her arms and the concussions. Had she ever broken anything else?

_But falling out of a window?_

Even if all these _had_ been only unfortunate accidents, and her parents had not abused her… _physically_ , all the evidence pointed to a serious case of neglect.

Aro hated that his angel has had to live through this for at least ten years, if the history of the breaks of her bones presented a correct timeline.

“ _When are you going to turn her?_ ” Renata was very curious.

“ _It… depends on a few factors. I could do it here, in the next few days. After we visit the beach and the go to a…_ ”Aro closed his eyes, “ _…church_.”

_Churches…_

“ _Oh, I love this!_ ” Darling Renata said with honest-to-Magic stars shining in her eyes. “ _Heidi is going to flip._ ”

“ _I’m glad I can be an unending source of amusement for you, dearest._ ” Aro said in a wry voice.

“ _…Her exceptionally bad luck may indeed force me to do it here._ ” Aro confided in his companion. “ _But I would like her turning to take place at the Castle. It will be so much more convenient that way._ ”

“ _Otherwise we will have our own newborn to care for during the flight back home._ ” Aro said, a grin playing on his lips.

The realisation seemed to hit Renata at long last for she looked to him with wide, terrified eyes.

“ _Master…_ ”

“ _Exactly. This is why I will turn her in Italy, if nothing exceedingly unwelcome happens in the next week._ ”

“ _Master?_ ”

“ _Yes, dearest?_ ”

“ _Would you allow me to be there when you turn her?_ ” Darling Renata asked, carefully monitoring his reaction. Why would she ever think he would deny her this? “ _I have never witnessed anyone change before._ ” She hastily added.

“ _Of course, dearest. I have no objections. We will ask Bella as well, but I do not see her disagreeing._ ”

“ _Oh._ ” Aro could see how relieved and elated Renata was. Was there _anything_ he would refuse her? “ _Thank you, Aro._ ”

Aro’s gaze returned to the girl in question who was still forlornly looking at the dark lake.

It seemed his human was in dire need of some cheering up.

***

Bella Swan was sitting in the lodge’s living room on the elevated and cushioned window seat and leaning her back against the wall, right by the huge glass windows and gazing at the view outside, a mug of warm hot chocolate in her hands.

She had been sitting there for a while now, just looking at the water which appeared to be green blue, at the dark green woods enclosing it. Bella could easily tell that it was night, that it was _dark_ , but it just did not matter anymore. Everything was every bit as visible as it would be in daylight. 

She could even see the highway on the other side on the lake in, frankly, absurd detail. She had counted thirty-six cars passing by in the last twenty five minutes she had been watching the view. None of them had been a police cruiser. Not that Bella really believed she would see Charlie driving past the lake. It was just a silly notion. Wouldn’t change a thing. If she saw him driving past.

Renée still had not even called her, Bella had checked earlier.

She knew her mother could be absent-minded, but… Bella had at least expected her mom to check in on her. Whether she had safely landed in Seattle. _Gotten to Forks._

It was… Bella was pretty sure Renée would remember to call on Christmas Day. Probably. It was not so surprising really. There must be a lot of things to distract her mother now. _Phil_ , _packing for their trip across the States_ , _children at her kindergarten_ -

The stars were magnificent. She had thought them nothing more than bright white shiny dots in the sky, before today.

Now? They were in all sorts of colours. Red, blue, green. Yellow. Orange. It was amazing. There were even colours she had never seen before. Had no name for. She will have to ask Aro sometime, if vampires had names for these colours. They were… **_beautiful_**.

Light Christmas music was playing in the background, courtesy of Renata’s laptop, mobile router and the lodge house’s speaker system. It created a rather pleasant Christmasy ambience, as did the burning fireplace, and the snow outside but-

Bella had gone to the kitchen to make pasta with homemade marinara sauce as soon as Carlisle and Eleazar had left.

Renata and Aro meanwhile had started to speak between themselves in Italian in the living room. Bella supposed she should start getting used to the language. She felt that their family mainly spoke Italian among themselves and Bella will have to learn, sooner rather than later. Which was cool. She loved Italian.

Bella had made the pasta and the homemade tomato sauce and had proceeded to satiate her hunger.

 _And she had prevailed!_ (At least for the present moment).

Bella had a feeling she would be fine until the morning. Which was a monumental relief. She could not understand how vampires could live with this level of… emptiness, constantly. But looking at Aro and Renata, as well as Carlisle’s family and friends, gave her hope that it actually won’t be as bad as she was dreading.

After her long overdue dinner she had taken her airport clothes and the pink sweater (which had been accidentally smudged with honey when she had attacked the jar upon entering the kitchen when they had gotten back from the Cullens) - basically everything except for the blue overalls and the clothes she was currently wearing, to the laundry room and had put them in the washing machine, turned the thing on, and gone back to her room to check her phone.

 _Then_ she had went back to the kitchen and made herself a huge cup of hot chocolate.

It was such a Renée thing to do.

To forget… _things_.

It had always been Bella, who was the one to remember paying the bills on time, collecting clothes from dry cleaners, to remember Grandma Marie’s birthdays, dentist and doctor’s appointments, it was Bella who had to get the groceries for both of them, the one who had to cook for herself (them both), as Renée always, _always_ came home from the kindergarten later than Bella did from school. Plus, her dear mother couldn’t cook for shit.

It ~~shouldn’t be~~ wasn’t all that surprising that Renée had forgotten to call her, but. It still stung.

If Bella called things by their true names, she has been kidnapped for forty-one hours now and her mother had not even… deemed it important enough to remember to make sure Bella had gotten across the country safe and sound.

She supposed Renée’s not worrying about Bella was mostly due to the fact that Bella had always been self-sufficient ( _by necessity_ ), so her mother had allowed her to fly by herself (as she had done since she was seven for every summer until she reached her fourteenth birthday) from Phoenix to Seattle, sometimes Bella had even flown from Seattle to Port Angeles, before always, _always_ having been picked up from the airport my Charlie.

Now Bella was old enough to get to Forks by herself, of course.

Charlie would have never agreed to this, Bella going alone from Seattle to Forks, _Bella going alone from Phoenix to Frisco to Seattle to Forks_ , if he had known.

Then again. _Charlie did not know a lot of things._

She had a fleeting thought this morning that Charlie would blame himself for her disappearance. And he would. Blame himself. Absolutely. But. He would blame Renée as well. And with good reason.

Renée. She would get over her disappearance. She had Phil. She was not that old herself. Only thirty-seven. …Perhaps she could even have another child. She would be fine, Bella was sure of this. Which was a tremendous relief to Bella.

 _But Charlie_. Even if she had not seen him for the past three years, Bella knew Charlie loved her very much. A few years ago, Bella had had a sudden thought about the fact that she lived with her mother, all of the time. There was no joint custody, obviously. Charlie had never come to Phoenix to see her as well. At first Bella thought it was because of his job.

 _It sure took a lot of his time_.

He usually took a few weeks off on the summers when she would visit, but… He probably thought that because of his demanding profession, which would sometimes mean night shifts and coming home on late evenings, it would be better for his daughter to live with Renée. Well. If he knew the real picture, perhaps Bella would have been a permanent citizen of the City of Forks for several years already.

Later, she thought that it was just a convenient excuse of not having to take on the responsibility of the role of a single parent while being the chief of police at the same time. It sure was easier this way. For him.

However.

She most likely wouldn’t have met Aro and Renata, if she lived in Forks. Or maybe they would have visited Carlisle, just like now, and she would have ended up somewhere in a ditch, just like poor Mr Newton. Knowing her luck…

And because of Charlie’s profession, her disappearance would probably hit him that much harder than Renée.

Charlie would try to find her. And fail. Not only because Aro and Renata were careful.

Granted, they did not exactly keep a low profile. What with the ‘ _flashy car_ ’ or her hospital visit or even them dragging her to their hotel.

(They had done it so fucking **efficiently**.

They had ~~followed~~ ‘tagged along’ her throughout the entire Seattle-Tacoma Airport until she finally retrieved her baggage, which Aro had snatched before she could even so much as touch it and then had proceeded to invite her to their hotel, which supposedly had ‘ _a whole suite for ourselves, Isabella! Several bedrooms, a splendid view, room service-’_ blah, blah, and had effectively managed to immediately hail a waiting cab just outside the airport’s entrance. Bella had still been foggy from her nap in the plane and completely out of her depth.

First, they had taken her things, so she followed them with the intention to repossess her belongings from Aro’s sticky fingers as soon as the opportunity presented itself but then both Renata and Aro had stashed all of their suitcases _including hers_ in the trunk of the taxi and then Aro had appeared by her side and without any ceremony and without heeding her stuttered protests pulled her inside the vehicle, Renata climbing in after them.

In that moment she had been truly afraid, for the first time since meeting them. Aro had started to monologue about Seattle and the last time he had been there, about the fucking weather, he had even started a conversation with the cab driver in fluent Mandarin. And every time she so much as opened her mouth to say something, Aro had turned to her and said ‘ _we are almost there, Isabella_ ’, ‘ _be patient for a little while longer, dear_ ’, ‘ _you will be able to get some more sleep in just a few minutes, worry not_ ’ and continued the conversation with their Chinese driver.

Renata... Renata had just kept smiling at Bella sweetly throughout the whole ride.

Bella’s hands had started to shake. Which was nothing compared to her panic when they had smuggled her into the Four Season’s Hotel without any difficulty whatsoever - the receptionist ‘ _Greg Sommers_ , _Mr Volturi, sir! Such an honour! And Ms Volturi, too! And… Guest! Welcome! Welcome!_ ’ hadn’t batted an eyelash about them arriving at such a late ( _early?)_ hour, nor had he said anything about a third unexpected person accompanying the pair in the dead of the night. The ~~guy~~ fucking asshole had not even asked to see her ID or passport.

She had been petrified when Aro had pulled her inside their suite and Renata had locked the door behind them with a loud, ominous click. Then Renata had made a backwards flip and gracefully fallen to the nearest sofa, pulled out her Blackberry, chirped a ‘ _Goodnight, Uncle, goodnight, Bella!_ ’ and proceeded to ignore the rest of the world around her.

Aro had continued to monologue about the _polite_ , _accommodating_ and _oh so_ _professional_ hotel staff, all the while not letting go of her hand and had rolled her suitcase into a lavish bedroom, given her a warm smile and left the room with a ‘ _We are leaving for Forks later in the day, around eleven o’clock, dear. Goodnight, Isabella!_ ’ and shut the door behind him.

It had taken her around a minute to snap out of her silent panic and move to lock the door. After another five minutes she had felt a little silly for having been so terrified. She’d quickly changed into her pyjamas, brushed her teeth and climbed under the soft covers. Her exhaustion had won over and she had succumbed to sleep, bare minutes after hitting the heavenly mattress. Bella had even remembered to set the alarm to ten o’clock. Eccentric, strangely beautiful kidnapping Italian strangers waning from her mind soon after.)

Charlie would fail in finding Bella not only because there would be little evidence (Bella had a suspicion the surveillance videos from the airports, Four Season Hotel and the bookstore would mysteriously disappear) - even if there was the police officer who had pulled them over or the staff at the hospital as well as the bookshop.

Even if Charlie would find out that Aro and Renata Volturi were her kidnappers, he would not be able to do anything. Legally.

Not with a force like _Valerian Incorporated_ standing between _Charlie_ and _Them_.

Bella was certain they were lawyered up to their incredibly sharp teeth and the soonest Charlie would get to even be in the same room as Aro or Renata would be… oh, _only after the next fifteen or so years_.

Bella loved her father. And Charlie loved her. But Bella had an uncomfortable suspicion that he loved his job a tad bit more than he loved his estranged ( _and whose fault was that?_ ) daughter.

Bella wondered what he would think about his beloved job being completely and utterly **_useless_** in finding his missing daughter.

Bella sighed and took a long sip of her chocolate. It always made her feel better. Hot chocolate. She looked to the white snow outside which hadn’t melted yet as the temperature was still holding a bit below freezing.

If this is how the Olympic Peninsula usually looked like during winter, Bella would not have been terribly against living here permanently despite the gruesome lack of sun. Who knew, right?

“Why so glum, angel?” Aro asked from behind her. He would need to try much harder now, if he wanted to scare her ever again, what with his ‘ _deceptive, no strings attached, no ill side effects, angel_ ’ venom running through her veins. Bella looked up into his mesmerising red eyes that held interest and concern in equal proportion and was pulled away from the wall by him as Aro settled behind her on the window seat and drew Bella between his bent knees so that she could comfortably lean her back against him.

“Are you still hungry, mmm?” Aro asked by her ear. Renata had disappeared off to somewhere with her laptop, but the music was still playing in the background.

“ _No._ ”

“ _Hmmm_. Are you still thinking about what Carlisle said?” And his right hand sneaked down her neck, shoulder and the bare arm and lightly encircled her right wrist. Most likely feeling the remnants of her past injury for himself.

“…Oh. _That_. No, not really.” Bella had thought about it for a bit when she had viciously bashed in the shell of the coconut. After, she had been distracted by the food and joining the conversation between Carlisle, Eleazar and Aro and had forgotten about it. She had not been about to miss all the fun. No freaking way.

“I was thinking about my mom. She… hasn’t called. I checked earlier.” She looked out of the window yet again, and let a bitter laugh escape her lips, “I’ve been kidnapped for longer than forty hours, had been seen by her last over two full days ago and… she still hasn’t the littlest idea.”

Bella lifted her hot chocolate to her lips and finished all of the remaining lukewarm drink. 

“Angel…”

“ _In her defence_ , she has always been a bit of a scatterbrain. I’m not that surprised really.” Bella set the cup down beside her and leaned her head against Aro’s hard chest. It felt like leaning against and being enveloped by a cashmere clad marble sculpture… _that breathed_.

 _Damn_. Renata was dead right about the view. Bella was falling in love with it. ~~(She was falling in love with a great many things lately).~~

“What really happened to your wrist, angel?” Aro asked as he carefully squeezed her wrist with his hand. It had been a long shot that they would buy the yoga excuse.

“…Nothing.” It sounded so childishly fake even to her ears. She had always had trouble lying about really personal things. If it wasn’t anything personal, Bella could bullshit without problem, nobody being the wiser. She could never figure out why that was or how to _stop doing it_.

“Tell me anyway?” Aro whispered as he began to leave cool (not icy, after his ‘ _no strings attached, very harmless venom_ ’ she had not felt cold once, hence her sitting by the cool windows only in a tee-shirt). He was such a persistent… annoying… fucking amazing smelling- he was doing this on purpose, she could recognise it now. He would suggest something while flooding her senses with his addictive honeysuckle ‘perfume’. Bella had a suspicion that it was no perfume at all but his natural scent which made her spill anything he asked of her. 

“It really _was_ nothing.” Bella sighed **.** And she was spilling the beans. Fantastic.

“It was just stupid. Not something I like to talk about with anyone… Err. A couple of years ago. One of my mother’s ex-boyfriends- he …Um. He was one of those controlling types.”

“Did not like me,” she snorted, “and _I_ did not like _him_. He was a tool. I think his idol was none other than Johnny Bravo. Because he sure looked like his long lost twin. Had everything down pat, the blond hair, the sunglasses, the generic clothes, _the torso_ … Long story short, he grabbed my arm when I got home from the library ‘after curfew’, like, _who the fuck did he think he was_ , setting some imaginary time I should be home by. I’d never had such a thing as _curfew_ in my whole life, nor would I stand for some misogynistic asshole telling me what I can or cannot do.” Aro had stopped littering kisses for a moment but after a beat started anew from behind her other ear. It was fucking distracting. And felt so good. But Bella somehow managed to focus on the memory.

“Well, I might have shouted something along the lines of ‘ _You're not my father, dickhead_ ’… And, well, the stupid prick apparently _wasn’t pleased_ and squeezed my wrist too tightly when I tried to get free… _Anyway_. I told my mom and she broke up with him immediately. I had to go to the hospital with a bruise in a shape of a handprint. That had not been fun, I’ll tell you that. All those pity-infused stares from nurses and doctors.”

“Do you want him to be taken care of? Someone from the family would be more than happy to do it.”

“ _What?_ … _You’d do that?_ ” Was he serious?! How could he seriously ask her something like that while leaving open-mouthed kisses on her neck she didn’t know, “Um. No… no, of course not.” … _Then again_ \- “His name was Kyle- Kyle. _Kyle_ … Um. I’ve forgotten Kyle’s last name. Damn.”

“I fear there are just too many Kyles out there to narrow it down just from the first name and his cartoonish appearance, angel.” Aro said but she could hear he was entertained.

“If you _do_ remember it, let us know. _Demetri_ loves that kind of thing.” Renata said somewhere from the second floor bedroom.

“Angel, darling Renata is completely correct. Demetri would definitely enjoy the hunt.” Aro said sincerely.

“I. I’ll keep that in mind. … _Thanks_.” They were completely crazy. But she loved them anyway.

There was a flip and Bella suddenly found herself flat on her back on the cushions, only in her bra and yoga pants as her tee had mysteriously disappeared, her hands held down to the soft cushions close to her head in Aro’s unyielding grip, their fingers entwined. He was lightly pressing her down as he loomed above her and started to nip at her exposed chest with his diamond sharp teeth.

“Aro-”

“Yes, angel?” he stopped and looked up at her with such an innocent expression, his left ear and the side of his face resting over her heart, surely feeling her erratic heartbeat fluttering right under his ear.

 _God, he was so beautiful_. She could not understand why he would ever want _her_.

“Um.”

“You want this, don’t you, angel?” Aro asked and looked in her eyes searchingly.

“ _Of course!_ I do. I do. I want to.” Bella had never been with anybody. But she definitely wanted this. _Anything. Everything. Plea-_

“ _Please_.” Her words made wicked flames gleam in his red eyes and he began to leave light kisses all the way from her heart to the left side of her neck. His hand had released her right one and she felt it slowly trail down from her wrist to her elbow to her shoulder, over her clavicle, between her breasts, leaving a burning trail in its wake. He started to lightly suck on the skin of her neck and Bella loosened the tie of his ponytail with her free hand and slipped her fingers through his silky blue hair -

“ _So silent_ -” - and Bella turned her head to where the lake rested to her right and exposed her neck even further for him.

“ _You are so silent, my angel._ ” He whispered reverently while his cool hand travelled further down her exposed belly, resting on it for a moment and leaving a scorching imprint before his fingers were sneaking under the waistband of her yoga pants and then her underwear (it felt like she couldn’t breathe, her insides were full of butterflies and her heart was beating as fast as a bird’s) as Aro widened his mouth to bite down, the points of his teeth ghosting over her erratic pulse before pressing down on her neck. Bella couldn’t help the quiet, gaspy moan that escaped her when his cool fingers brushed over her-

“Master.” Aro froze and then slowly pulled away his teeth _and his hand_ and looked in the direction of Renata’s voice. Bella had turned her head as well to look at Renata, betrayed astonishment no doubt painted all over Bella’s scarlet face and saw Renata reclining in one of the armchairs by the cracking fireplace and _looking at them_. _How long had she been watching?_

“ _What is it, Renata_?” Aro asked in an arctic tone.

“I hope you were not about to bite your Odile, a few moments ago.”

“That is _exactly_ what I was about to d-”

“But, _Master_. If you are not going to _share_ you leave me with no other choice but to go snack on Mr Newton, _Junior_.” Renata grinned mischievously. Then her gaze glazed over a bit, “Carlisle would be crushed. I just know it. I can already picture his devastated face… Plus, he looked _so_ _very miserable_ , earlier.”

“ _Carissima_.” Aro hissed through clenched teeth.

“I believe what Aro meant, in fact, was _fangblocker_ , Renata.” Bella said in a deadpan tone, looking at Renata through slitted eyes. Renata started giggling, Aro sighed unhappily and _damnit!_ got off of her.

Bella sat up straight and resignedly started looking around for her shirt but could not see it anywhere.

“Aro, where did you put my shirt?”

“It is gone, angel.” Aro informed her, pointed not looking at her.

“What do you mean ‘ _gone_ ’?” Bella asked, bewildered. “What happened to it?”

“I made it disappear.” Aro said in a clipped tone. “…And I have not figured out how to reverse this particular piece of magic. _Yet_.”

Bella had no words.

She was gaping at him.

“You did _what?_ Why would you- It was my last shirt, Aro! I don’t have anything else! The rest are currently being washed!”

“I’m confident you will get your shirt back. …Eventually. Renata could probably lend y-”

“My apologies, Master, but anything I have with me will be too small for her. If we were at the Castle, I could have easily found something.” Renata said with an honest expression on her lovely face.

Aro muttered something in a language Bella’s ears had never heard before. Never, ever, never. It was beautiful. Italian or French did not hold a candle to it, nor did any other language she’d ever heard. Just how many languages did Aro speak? Alright, if one lived for ~~six tousan~~ **_Nope._** _Not going there_.

Aro was still muttering something as he left the room and entered his bedroom. Some brief rummaging and he reappeared by her side with a red, long sleeved v neck sweater, which he extended for Bella to take.

“This should fit you well enough, angel.”

“Oh.” It was so sweet of him to offer her one of his own. “ _Thank you_ , Aro.”

Melted her heart into an even bigger puddle than it already was.

Then again, _he did lose her very last dry shirt_.

Bella swiftly pulled it on. It was a bit too big on her, but it was _so soft_. And it had the same sweet Japanese honeysuckle scent Aro carried with him. She won’t give it back to him. _Nope_.

“I _am_ sorry for interrupting.” Renata said quietly, still sincere as she looked to Aro and then to Bella, “But your blood really does smell too nice for your own good. _Even better than yesterday._ I would have to go to Port Angeles again, perhaps even further.”

That… sucked. But Bella would not want to force Renata out of the house just because she and Aro wanted to-

 _Not cool_.

“I… Of course, Renata.”

Aro just sighed, sat down cross legged behind Bella, easily picked her up again, as if she weighed nothing at all and placed her on his lap. _Aro liked to do this a lot._ Why? Not that she was complaining.

Bella really loved the cuddles.

“Were you serious about going to Ruby Beach?” Bella looked up into Aro’s ruby red eyes.

“Of course.” Aro replied, “After all, we wouldn’t want to deny Renata her pictures, would we?”

“That’s right, Master.” Renata said from the armchair.

“I’ve only been to Ruby Beach once. Years ago. But it’s very beautiful there. Usually we just went to First Beach down at La Push but there are no sea stacks there. I guess there are a few at Second Beach but again. Ruby’s the best.”

“We could go tomorrow, Aro. We’ve nothing better to do anyway, _before we go to Port Angeles_ in the evening _._ ” Renata sweetly said. Bella felt the fast cool breath of air that left Aro’s nose on the nape of her neck. “I checked a few minutes ago. There is a choir singing at Queen of Angels church in Port Angeles tomorrow at seven in the evening.”

“Oh, I can’t wait. _So cool_. Thank you. _Both of you_. You know, for humouring me.” Bella looked up at him once more, “You don’t have anything against churches, do you?”

“No, angel.” Aro said as he put his chin on her shoulder. “My twins, on the other hand…”

Renata inclined her head in clear interest, paying undivided attention to Aro.

“Yes, I believe you might not know this, Renata.” Aro huffed a laugh.

“They were still such children, barely two hundred years old. …It would have made them only around fifteen by your human standards then, angel.”

“I’ve always known they despised anything to do with Christianity, given their tragic human lives, but I confess I had, perhaps, overlooked just _how deep_ their hatred for the religion ran.”

“What did they do?” Bella was curious, despite the foreboding feeling she was getting.

“You must understand something first. I do not read the family’s thoughts as often as you might think, angel. Only when it is necessary, or when they want to show me something themselves. They have all grown used to it, but I do understand the want for privacy.” Aro paused a little but Bella could hear a smile in his next words-

“In the year one thousand a mysterious chain of church arson cases-” A startled laugh escaped from Renata, but she quickly managed to smother it behind her palm, “-started to spread throughout Europe.”

“I confess I caught them at it only two years later.” Aro slowly admitted.

“ _Master_. **How**. _Oh Sweet Circe!_ How many churches did they burn down?” Renata asked-

“Two hundred and fifty-two.” Renata’s eyes widened in shock.

“ _Mon Dieu! Aro!_ ” Renata’s eyes had become a bit shiny, hadn’t they? “How is it that I have not heard about this before?” Renata loudly proclaimed in sheer delight. “I know they are capable of something of this magnitude but I’d never think they’d go through with it!”

“It was quite a while ago, darling. Jane and Alec do not talk about this particular bout of hooliganism of theirs as they were punished quite severely for it. Not because they are ashamed though.” Aro quietly laughed, “They were ashamed they got caught, not of the deed itself. So they do not want to talk about it. And there are not so many around anymore who had been made aware of their little hobby in the first place. Only my brothers and the queens.”

Bella was feeling uneasy. The more she got to know about Aro’s children, the more dread spread through her. She will have to live with them quite soon, won’t she. Aro and Renata were not exactly painting a pretty picture of their family for her.

“To answer your earlier question, angel, no, I do not have anything against churches. I’ve been in quite many of them since they were first started to be built around the world.”

“However.” Humour was seeping through his voice. “Something strange might happen.”

“What do you mean?” Bella looked up at him again, curious.

“Belief is a very strong force, angel.” Aro said with a vague, amused smile on his crimson lips. “It tends to concentrate more strongly in sacred temples, churches being one kind of such edifices. The older they are and the more humans who truly believe pray there, the greater the energy that is accumulated inside them.”

Say _what_ again?

“Ultimately, they all believe in something greater than themselves, in a higher power, it you will.”

“This is where it becomes interesting. People in such places often feel closer to the Cosmic Divine Consciousness. The more spiritually sensitive a person is, the closer the connection.”

_Was he for real?_

“You see, some individuals sometimes can tell there is something… _strange…_ about me. They can never pinpoint what that is but they might become curious. _Or they may not_.”

“Other times the buildings themselves prove to be problematic. They tend to amplify the inherent magic vampires possess. The end result is quite amusing, at times.”

Aro’s gaze became a little veiled, as if he was recalling something… no, _seeing_ his memories play in front of his eyes.

“Lincoln, 1548. The central spire of the cathedral spontaneously collapsed, precisely when I stepped out of the church. Once, in Portugal, 1640, the church bell would not work. The humans were swinging it, but it created no sound. France, 1740. The glass windows shattered just as I walked inside the church.”

“Once, in Barcelona, in the year 1840.” A smirk stretched on his lips, “The inside of the basilica was suddenly swarmed with thousands of hundreds of bats mid vesper prayer. _The **Chaos** that exploded in there…_” Aro closed his eyes in twisted joy and shook his head from side to side, savouring the memory.

“Austria, 1887. Every candle in the church lit up but the candles could not be extinguished no matter how hard the food tried; the flames on them were dancing but the wax wasn’t melting.” _The food_? The food. _Jesus Christ_. “Vienna,1888. July. St Stephen's Cathedral. It started snowing inside the church. Forty inches of snow, before it stopped.”

“1903. December. St Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City. Every single person in the Christmas mass fell unconscious when I stepped inside the church. I had wanted to listen to… I do not even know what I had been searching for then, _a distraction_ from all that **_rage_**. My Darling had died a few days prior-” _Aro’s wife has been dead for longer than one hundred years?_ “-and I was consumed by such _frightening rage_. I feared I would do something irreversible, so I thought that perhaps I would hear something there that would calm me, give some reason for changing my mind. Evidently, I heard nothing.” Aro said barely above a whisper.

“What did you do?” Bella whispered.

“Killed every last man, woman and child I could find that was a werewolf during the next seventy years.”

Bella felt as if a bucket of ice cold water had been dumped on her head.

Chills ran down her spine and the faint hairs on her arms stood on end. Aro said this as if talking about _Valerian Inc._ employee perks. Totally disinterested and unbothered. But there was this undertone of deep satisfaction there. He was not sorry. Not in the slightest.

“And ordered others to hunt down the remaining ones.” Aro calmly added.

Renata was silently listening with unreadable features and just. Looking at her Master with guarded eyes.

“ _Why_ -”

“Their kind tried to kill the two remaining queens. They were successful in killing one. _They bit My Darling._ They had to pay.” Bella swallowed. Aro kissed her temple in reassurance when he noticed her obvious distress. Bella guessed it was one more proof he really was incapable in reading her thoughts.

“As I said earlier this morning, there are so few of them left you have absolutely nothing to worry about. They will keep far away if they know what was good for them.”

“I _._ I… _Yeah_.” Bella felt her eyes become misty and tried to will the tears away. Why was she tearing up? She did not know any werewolves. Maybe they really were as bad as Aro made them sound like… _but hunting out an entire species?_ It was… _heinous_.

“ _Angel._ Don’t cry.” How could _Aro_ _do_ something like _that_?

Bella stared into his eyes and saw how genuinely concerned for her they were and couldn’t understand how he could talk about eradicating a group of supernatural beings but at the same time be so incredibly attentive to her slightest distress.

It did not make any _sense_.

She could feel tears starting to fall down her face.

Bella turned around fully, hugged his neck and started to loudly cry in the crook of his shoulder. She couldn’t stop. It was so awful. It mad her so incredibly sad.

“ _Angel_.” Aro said in evident concern.

They had joked around plenty of times about Aro being insane. Now she finally got what Renata and Aro had been on about all this time. They were just telling her the fucking truth over and over again.

She would not have thought it to be really true.

 _Fine_. He was bipolar. That she could tell. But so were many, many people. That did not necessarily make them crazy.

_Aro was **brilliant**. _

The most amazing person she’d ever met.

It made her so devastatingly sad to realise that living for six fucking thousand years plus hearing God only knew how many people’s thoughts, not even counting the questionable sanity of those particular people, had _fucking consequences_.

It was a sheer miracle that he hadn’t gone totally mad in this time.

How _hadn’t_ Aro gone totally mad? _How?_

It was apparent _now_ that he was fully aware of this fact.

It was so horribly heart-breaking to understand that the person she was falling for were this... _broken_.

But also so fucking _strong_.

 _How_ could he be so fucking strong?

Bella could never imagine herself being strong enough to live for this long. Maybe it was just the human in her speaking. Maybe becoming a vampire will drastically change her feelings towards living for so damn long.

Maybe, maybe, maybe.

“ _Angel. Dear one. Why are you crying, mmm?_ ” He was softly carding his fingers through her hair.

“I-” she couldn’t even talk.

“I cannot help if I don’t know what is wrong, darling.”

“I… so-… sorry.” Bella stuttered out. There was no reason to even mention werewolves. _What good would it do?_ But she could- “Ab-…about. Your... Your wife. ” Bella could see he had loved his wife so damn much. _She must have been an incredible person_.

“Shh. It was quite a while ago, angel. I should… not let it still disturb me to this extent. Our kind has near perfect recall. She will live on in my memory for as long as I shall walk this earth.”

He just. Kept talking and made everything worse.

“I’m so fucking sorry, Aro.” Bella said into his shoulder.

“ _You will be the death of me, my Odile_.” Aro dramatically declared before sighing. And now he was making her laugh through her tears.

“A mere swan? The death of _you_?” Bella let out a shaky albeit amused breath, “ _I don’t think so, mister._ ”

“We shall see.”

After a few more minutes she had calmed down and was simply leaning against him, exhausted from the crying.

“Do you want to go flying for a little while, angel? It’s the one thing that always, without fault, cheers me up.” Bella pushed away from him so she could look at him curiously, then she turned her head to Renata, who had arched an entertained eyebrow at Aro. Clearly she found his suggestion funny _. For whatever reason._

“Flying.” Bella repeated as she dried the tears from her face with the sleeves of ~~Aro’s~~ her soft cashmere sweater.

“Yes.” Aro confirmed. He turned his head to the lake to point to the darkness of the sky.

“It is sufficiently dark outside. Nobody should notice us.”

“Why didn’t you tell me vampires could fly?” Wasn’t that pertinent information Bella should have been made aware of?

“I did. At the hospital. Have you forgotten already, angel?” Aro asked with a teasing edge to his question. It made Bella wary-

 _Oh, God._ That had been real? _All of it?_

Could a person die from mortification?

“Yes, _Uncle_. Please explain why you had omitted this particular piece of vital information about our kind from your Odile when you were sweet talking about how _Super_ it is to be a vampire.” Renata asked in a sugar sweet soprano voice.

“ _Carissima_.” Aro heavily exhaled. Then he shifted his eyes back to Bella.

“Most vampires cannot fly. I know only one other who can, apart from me.” Aro reluctantly admitted.

“Emil. Our marvellous pilot. The reason why we are not fighting giant squid right this very moment somewhere in the Pacific. It is his gift. His _only_ gift.” Renata helpfully explained.

“Darling. I have tried explaining this to you before - every single vampire has the potential to learn how to fly. It is only the matter of shifting one’s perception of the w-”

“LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA!!” Renata started loudly singing as she pressed her hands over her ears, effectively cutting Aro’s words off. “I’m not hearing this!”

Aro's lips thinned as he watched Renata actively ignoring him.

Bella put her hand on Aro’s cool shoulder to get his attention.

“Aro. I would love to go flying with you. Of course I would! _You do not even need to ask. I can’t wait._ ”

“Do you really?” Aro asked mirthfully.

“Yes. I do. Are we going now?” Bella said as she sprung from his lap and soundlessly landed on her bare feet.

“Yes, we are.” Aro whispered in her ear from behind her, startling her. **_That_** _had been Sneaky!_ She hadn’t even seen him _move_. Despite her improved vision.

_Just how fast was he?_

***

Aro led Isabella out of the front door by her hand.

He refused to believe touching her would ever lose its charm for him. He had never before been able to touch someone without getting a feedback loop right back from them. This felt… the opposite of normal.

 _It felt extraordinary_.

They walked out onto the porch, barefoot, _both of them_. He had wanted Isabella to wear her shoes but she had assured him that the cold did not bother her anymore.

How peculiar.

Aro had conceded, but-

“Are you certain you do not want to wear your pink boots, angel? The temperature is still below freezing-”

“ _Aro_. I’m fine. This is so freaking cool. I want to fly without shoes.” She did not have her winter’s jacket on as well. Only her yoga trousers and his red sweater. Which was too large for her. But she looked so adorable in it…

“Very well. _If you are sure_.”

“Yes, yes, I’m very sure!” She exclaimed impatiently but he had a feeling she found him funny. Not that he _knew_ that. It was just an assumption, based on a _feeling_. “What do I have to do? How does it work?”

Aro smiled, “You do not have to do anything but-”

He led her down the few steps from the porch to the patio and stopped a little bit further down on the driveway. He could feel the weight of the dog’s yellow eyes on him, looking at them between the trunks of the trees.

Aro was already holding her left hand in his right one, so he took her right hand with his left.

“Do not let go.”

She was looking at him with wide, excited, half-unbelieving eyes. No matter. She will, after a few moments. Believe.

Aro breathed in the fresh winter night air, let the element envelop him and his angel, and severed the figurative ‘tie’ in his mind that made the world make sense.

It was such an ingrained thing, in humans, as well as in vampires, because they _had_ _been_ humans, at one point. They believed the world to work a certain way, so it did.

_Gravity._

It was real. As much as _everything_ was real, _which was the biggest lie in the history of lies_ , because _nothing_ was real, _nothing_ but the consciousness.

And _everything_ was nothing more than a _thought_.

Reality was just an illusion after all. A tremendously convincing illusion, but one all the same. So he stopped believing the default model of the world and replaced it with his own.

_Where there was no such thing as gravity for him and his angel._

So the earth was of no consequence anymore. There was no possibility of falling down to it, it was _impossible_ , they might as well fall down to the stars now.

Their bare feet lost contact with the snowy ground and they levitated in place a feet from the ground. He gave Isabella a little bit of time to get used to the feeling of being weightless. 

He felt her grip his hands that much tighter, but there was no need for her to be this tense. There was no reason. _No reason at all_.

He paid close attention to Isabella’s expressions (always, _always_ keeping his surroundings in mind. For this was not _Home_ , there was no Renata, nor another trusted being to watch his back out here. That, on the other hand, was the default mode of vampires. _Never-ending alertness_. _This_ , he was not willing to attempt to bend at the present moment) and saw how her excitement changed into shock and then stunned amazement. She looked around them, to the ground, then to him, as if seeing him for the first time.

“ _Aro_ … _How…?_ _This is amazin_ -” If she could talk, she was ready for more. Aro willed the air above them to part while that below them to push both of them up. Instantly they were gaining altitude, not shooting up with lightning speed as he usually like to do, but slowly and levelly drifting up, higher than the tile roof of their house, higher than the snow covered dark green spruce tree tops which surrounded them on all sides, for miles, higher, ever higher, closer to the _lovely stars_ …

Isabella’s heart was beating so fast. So very fast. She was taking deep breaths that she held in as long as she was able, looking around them in amazed wonder.

He stopped one hundred metres above the ground and slowly spun them around in circles.

The view was terrific.

The feeling of being in the air again, after _months_ , was heavenly.

To have Isabella with him… it made him unbearably happy.

He had taken Renata with him, once, in 1966, over the Atlantic. She had wrapped herself around him like a koala bear and screamed so loud he had been forever grateful he had learned how to make himself deaf many millennia ago.

Otherwise his ears would have been ringing _for days_ afterwards.

It had been one hundred and one years since he last took His Darling with him to the night skies. _She had loved flying_. The first time Aro had taken her with him, she had cried her first tears as a vampire. From pure joy. **_Not from endless grief_**. It had been the most beautiful sight he had seen since meeting her… Sulpicia had never looked at him the same-

“ _Aro_ … _I have no words_.” Aro saw His Darling’s exact expression mirrored on the face of his angel as she attempted to put her emotions into words.

He _loved_ it and he _loathed_ it in equal measure.

It hurt to see His Darling in Isabella. But he _loved_ His Darling, so seeing even the smallest reflection of her in someone _alive_ , again… Aro would not trade it for anything in the world.

Had Fate sent her to him as a gift or as punishment? Her thoughts were forever sealed from him, her expressions mirrored His Darling’s, and her blood reminded him of-

“- _ro… How… I’m… I can’t!_ ” She laughed in sheer delight, and laughed and laughed, such a beautiful sound, he felt a smile find home on his face. (He should not think about His Darling or his sister now. For they were gone, but Isabella was _right here- )_

“ _It’s… You-_ ”

 _“You are **incredible**. Do you have any idea what you remind me of?_” Isabella asked in pure wonder.

He had. Many had mistaken him for-

“ _An angel._ ” Isabella said, her eyes spellbound to his. “ _You call me ‘angel’ all the time. All the while being the real thing yourself._ ”

 _“_ I am no angel, _angel._ ”

She laughed again.

 _“You can do things like this,_ ” she motioned around them, “ _and want anyone, want **me** , to believe you?_” Isabella was gazing at him with astounded, captivated eyes.

 _“_ Being able to fly does not make me _an angel_ , angel. _”_ It amused him, a little, that she would think this-

“ _You look like Magic, Aro_.” His angel mused, wonder shining in her chocolate eyes and perhaps he could understand, why she thought thus, for he could see his reflection in her enthralled eyes, which kept on looking at him as if seeing him anew.

She had taken out the tie from his hair earlier before darling Renata had unashamedly interrupted them and he had not put it back in, so his hair was lazily swimming through the air untethered by false gravity, as would Isabella’s if they were not still captured in a loose bun. And perhaps she was also referring to his vampiric features, for he knew his were ones of the most _nice-looking_ among his kind.

Perhaps, looking in her eyes and seeing himself mirrored in them, for he so rarely gave any care about how others saw him (apart from keeping up within the contemporary fashion trends, especially when outside the Castle) he had to admit he did not look _human_.

Somehow, he had failed in passing remotely inconspicuously among the herds of humans that populated the civilised parts of the world himself (no wonder he shied away from food in public as much as possible. He _had_ noticed the effect his presence tended to leave on humans, but… _perhaps_ there was more to it than food being week when encountering a pretty face. He will have to think on this _later-_ )

“Angel…” he looked up to the stars, then back to his lovely human. “Aren’t you cold at all?”

“What- Oh. No, Aro. _No_. I’m fine. It is cold, I know this, but I do not feel it, the same as the gravity has suddenly disappeared.” She shook her head, “ _How are you doing this?_ ”

He laughed, “Magic, as you said.”

Aro pulled her closer, wrapped his hands tightly around her and shot up towards the stars.

She screamed.

And screamed.

And screamed.

(At least her screams were not as nails-against-chalkboard-like as Darling Renata’s had been.)

He stopped at the height of three thousand metres from the ground.

“My heart! My poor, poor heart! It’s going to stop, Aro! Because of you!” Isabella accused, however, her excitement and mirth betrayed her.

He couldn’t stop the giggles, _how right she was_ , and she did not even know it.

“ _My angel_. Your heart _will_ stop because of me.” He whispered in her ear as he guided her hand over his frozen heart and pressed her soft, warm palm right above it. He heard her breath stutter as her fingers curled as if hoping to find his heart by feeling it beat under her touch, _just once_ -

She looked into his eyes with such a mix of emotions he had difficulty telling them apart.

“I… hadn’t realised.” Most likely because she had not heard other humans’ heartbeats before the recent improvement to her senses and she had not paid overly close attention to not hearing any around her now.

“It will still be here. _Always_.” He pressed his free hand on her beautifully loud and strong heart. She had to understand. “ _Your heart_ , even when it will still forever, will continue to guard your soul for eternity, you will never lose it, my angel.”

“…I believe you, Aro.” Her eyes told him she really did understand that which some of their kind still held doubts about.

“I’m glad.” He made a sudden roll through the air, making his angel squeal in joy.

“ _Arrrrooooooo!_ This is _phenooooomenal!_ Oh, _My Goooood!_ ” Aro released one of his hands from her iron grip so that he was holding her only by her right one, situated them in flight so that they were swimming on their backs with a clear view of the night sky where billions of stars were shining their colourful light upon them. He loved the stars. _How could he not_.

The sky had changed during the millennia he had been watching it, gazing up at the small, bright dots. Many of them had died, new ones had been born, for nothing ever stayed the same, not the stars and most certainly not vampires.

“It is so… _beautiful_ up here. So calm. I still can’t believe this is real.” His angel said, gazing up at the lovely stars.

But it seemed tonight the stars could not hold his attention for long because he always, always found his eyes drawn back to the beautiful human Fate had put in his path mere days before now.

“It is very real, angel.” As much as anything was real, which meant flying could be made real-

“ _I love it, Aro_.” Isabella breathed. She gave one last glance to the stars and turned herself around, so that she was looking down to Lake Crescent, then she looked in the direction of Forks-

“I can see Forks! It’s so close! And-” She slowly turned to the South-

“And the ocean!” he let her keep slowly spinning both of them in an anti-clockwise direction-

“And- Oh My God! That’s Seattle!”

“ _And that’s_ _freaking_ _Canada_!” Isabella cried out. “I can’t believe this. _This is_ **_Insane_** _!_ ”

He had succeeded. No trace of whatever that had caused her crying fit earlier to be seen.

His angel was brimming with happiness.

It suited her so much better.

“Aro… Is that… Are those _birds_ that are getting closer and _closer_ to us?”

His head instantly snapped to the faint sound of swishing wings only to see a damned flock of white whistling swans heading right to them, at their exact altitude.

This was getting ridiculous.

He could feel the beginnings of a murderous rage rise in him.

It would not do to lose his mind and to attack and kill all of the blasted twenty-five nearing birds, for no sound reason. He would be hard pressed to explain his… _motive_ to Isabella.

Caius always asked him ‘Why’, after he had murdered anyone seemingly impulsively or without due cause. Aro has had plenty opportunity and practice to find plausible explanations on the spot, but this hypothetical murdering of swans was something he felt would strain even his considerable imaginative faculties.

He pulled her in, pressing her close to him and lost altitude at a reasonable speed, which did not fail to make her squeal in excitement either way (he could fly with Renata and His Darling and almost any of his family as fast as he pleased, but his angel was still human. He needed to proceed with caution).

They soared just over the treetops, the birds flying over them. And Isabella kept kicking snow off the spruce treetops whenever they flew by close enough for her bare feet to reach them.

“Angel, you will hurt yourself on the spruce needles.”

“I will pretend I did not hear you, Aro. It will save us both loads of embarrassment later.”

In that case, _no more sharp tree tops for Isabella_.

He flew down to the lake’s surface. It had not yet started to freeze over.

The below freezing temperature should remain for several days more for ice to form over the water body.

They were slowly gliding about three feet above the water.

“Oh, now this is freaky.” He could feel Isabella wrap herself around him as tightly as she could. _And now she reminded him of darling Renata the Koala._

“What is?”

“The bottom of the lake, the sluggishly swimming fish in the depth of it, the sunken tree trunks, the huge, dark rocks, the movement in- _there_! _What **was** that!_” She pressed her face into the crook of his neck so that she would not have to see the horror of the underwater world.

“It sounds to me like one of those irrational fears you humans have, angel.”

“ _Aro!_ _It is not_ **_unfounded_** _!_ There are _things_ there! _Moving!_ ” He could hear and _feel_ her heart picking up speed, and the intoxicating scent of fear spreading around them. His angel was genuinely scared. “Please, please, _please_ get me out of here. _Please_.”

To make the unexpectedly terrifying situation worse, an unreasonably loud splash (not dissimilar to the sound of a detached vampire head being flung into water) sounded a few metres behind Isabella, eliciting a sharp, terrified scream from his human.

Aro thought the whole affair was absurd.

However, his angel was unknowingly straining his considerable but nevertheless limited patience.

She was seeping fear, adrenaline sweetening her blood beyond what was reasonable, her heart rate elevated, her warm body already in his arms, her neck mere inches from his teeth, _and_ she was screaming and begging.

She had no idea what she was doing. No idea she _could not do_ things like these to vampires. He was denying himself so many instincts which screamed to bury his teeth in her neck right this second… _Fate help him_.

“…there is nothing there, _nothing_. I did not hear _anything_ , there was **nothing** there-”

“Angel. _Stop_ -”

“Please, Aro, please, _plea_ -” he pressed his palm over her mouth, immediately silencing her pleas. Which seemed to scare her even more for her eyes widened in panic.

“- _stop begging_.” And shouting, and being afraid, and letting her heart beat her intoxicating blood in her panic through her veins even faster than before.

He closed his eyes and inhaled a calming breath, only to regret it a moment later when her lovely terror flavoured citrus scent hit his lungs.

“Will it help if you cannot see the depth of the lake anymore?” Aro asked. Three and a half heartbeats later she enthusiastically nodded her head, her eyes pleading.

The peaceful, sinuous waving of the water’s surface in the soft breeze halted, the water stilled, a thin layer of ice spreading forth over the lake from the surrounding shores to its middle.

Fifteen seconds later, the ice had reached the centre of the lake’s surface right below them, connecting and frosting white, all the while the ice continued thickening below the tiny cover, spreading deeper below, as ice swallowed up more of the lake's water.

In half a minute the lake had gained a nice, smooth, opaque ice layer of twelve inches. 

“Is this better, angel?” Aro asked as he lifted his hand from her face, allowing her to speak, but she only slowly nodded, pupils dilated and eyes perfectly round that stared at the lake.

Her heart rate had dropped considerably, thank Fate, as had her panicked fear, but not the adrenaline. Her sweet blood was still saturated with it.

Aro let gravity reconnect with reality and lightly dropped on his feet on the matted ice.

It felt pleasantly cool against the soles of his feet.

He did not let Isabella down. She was still wrapped around him, her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He did not care that the cold supposedly did not bother her anymore. There was no chance he would let her stand on ice with bare feet.

She was so warm. A tantalising contrast to the surrounding coolness.

Isabella loosened her hold on his neck, leaned back and searched his face, his eyes.

“Is it _later_?” His angel’s dark eyes were full of burning warmth. He could see starlight being captured in them.

“I believe it is.” Her heart skipped a beat, the irises of her eyes disappearing almost fully.

Aro could see only welcoming anticipation in her. It was so rare for humans to offer him their blood freely. When he did not have to take it from them by _force_.

He pulled her closer, her sweet, sweet blood beginning to sing in G note, the heady sound of Tibetan singing bowls flooding his ears, her neck starting to gleam with sky blue sheen-

“Can I kiss you?” His angel shyly asked, effectively dimming the sound.

Aro’s eyes snapped to hers as she drew her dark gaze from his lips up to his eyes in askance.

He had not kissed anyone in one hundred one years and six days.

He had not let anyone kiss _him_ in one hundred one years and six days.

The thought made him hesitate.

“…or not.” His angel trailed off unsurely in face of his apparent indecision. A shadow of something alike despair and acceptance and hurt in her eyes and voice-

Aro pressed his lips to Isabella’s warm ones. 

She inhaled a startled breath and then melted in the kiss, closing her eyes and sliding her hands back around his neck and in his hair.

Aro gently traced her sweet, soft lips which reminded him of tangerine lobes, which reminded him of _home_ and of _her_ … and of the last time he had kissed His Darling when she had still been human, just like Isabella was still human right now-

But there was nothing he could glean from her mind, not what she wanted him to do, whether she even liked this, if she wanted him to stop _or continue, if he was too rough with her_ -

Isabella opened her mouth and lightly tasted his lips with the tip of her scorching tongue and his restraint evaporated. Aro drew her in _closer_ , giving a quick thought to block the release of the toxin that would make her Burn, and met her scorching tongue with his own as he slowly rolled it along hers, exploring her fiery mouth deeper and deeper, and tasting the madly sweet promise of a truly heavenly meal.

His angel’s eyes sprung open, pitch black, only to fall shut again a moment later. She moaned softly as the kiss drew longer, her hands pulling at his hair, as she tried to press ever closer.

It was a shame humans needed air to breathe to stay conscious.

Isabella broke away from the kiss with a displeased sound and inhaled the cold winter air while Aro continued kissing her cheek, her chin, her neck.

She breathed out light smoke.

Breathed in and let out another hot, misty breath, “ _You taste like… liquorice_ … _so sweet,_ ” his angel whispered dizzily, but her blood had started to sing its enthralling tune once more, drowning him in the sound and the flavour…

He slid his hand on the back of her head, turning it a little to the right and bit into her pale, slender neck.

In the background of the enrapturing music a surprised gasp changed into pained whimpers but she did not try to pull away.

His angel’s blood was intoxicating. Consuming. Ensnaring even. Maddeningly sweet but rich in her unique fruity flavour. And she had Aro’s preferred O negative blood type. How incredibly lovely.

She possessed the second tastiest blood he had drank in quite some time.

 _Although_ … Miss Young’s blood had been very nice as well. Very nice, indeed. Still, Aro undisputedly preferred Isabella’s lovely sweet peach and citrus flavour over that of the wolf girl’s.

He slowly pulled her singing blood from her veins as he allowed a heavy dose of anaesthetic agents to enter her bloodstream, enough to cause an aphrodisiacal reaction. It would not be long now-

Isabella’s quiet whimpering ceased and was replaced with delirious gasps and moans and frantic squirms the longer he kept drawing more and more and more and more and more and more of her intoxicating blood, mouthful after mouthful, it made Aro a little delirious as well.

His angel was quieting as were her struggles to get closer to him or to escape from the onslaught of the euphoric sensation of a vampire drinking from her.

And even though he could not feel the echo of her pleasure like he would have with anybody else, her scalding blood was more than enough for him to lose his mind over. 

Aro swallowed another mouthful of her heavenly ruby red blood.

His poor angel had had no idea what proper feeding felt like for humans, the previous night having offered only a small taste of how fantastic it could feel for them if vampires wanted their victims to enjoy the blood drinking process themselves. (Usually, his kind did not bother. _Aro_ usually did not bother.)

Aro swallowed another mouthful of her heavenly ruby red blood.

A strangled gasp was ripped away from his human. Her arms lost their hold on his neck, her legs began sliding down his waist. She became completely lax in his arms, her heart steadily slowing down as unconsciousness stole her away.

Aro swallowed another mouthful of her heavenly ruby red blood.

Aro swallowed another mouthful of her heavenly ruby red blood.

Aro swallowed another mouthful of her heavenly ruby red blood.

Aro-

-stopped and pulled back from his treat. The wound on her neck was sluggishly oozing her heavenly ruby red blood.

He licked it all up before sealing the wound.

Her skin repaired before his eyes in seconds.

Any more and she would not recover fast enough for them to go to Ruby Beach tomorrow morning.

She had been exquisite.

Pity he would not be able to drink from her for at least a week now. Not that he _needed_ her blood. He had drunk from her enough to not crave blood for months now. The advantage of being several millennia old and having more Magic than he knew what to do with.

Aro slid his hands below her knees and upper back and started a leisurely trek over the glistening ice towards their lovely lodge.

He saw Renata sitting by the window in the same place Isabella had chosen an hour earlier and lifting her eyes from her laptop's screen to check in on him for a moment before most likely returning to the writing of her latest novel.

If she had not begun writing another one, the current story she was working on was a romantic Gothic horror fantasy between a young woman - a vampire-human hybrid and a blond Anglican priest. Sweet Darkness, the suspense in that piece…

Perhaps Aro will convince Renata to send a copy of the finished book to Carlisle. Aro deeply felt that Carlisle might enjoy the story quite a bit.

The dog was still watching them from the trees. Darling Renata had been completely right, this was indeed getting a little too annoying for his taste.

Isabella had fallen into deep sleep, her head resting against his shoulder, breathing and heart rate slow but steady. Aro did not enjoy the fact that he would have to wake her up in few minutes. But she had lost approximately one point two litres of her blood volume.

They had reached the shore where their lodge stood a few metres from the water. He walked off the ice on the snow clad ground and covered the distance up to the slight elevation to the driveway and then up the three steps to the porch.

Aro stopped in front of the door and turned to look past the pagoda bird feeder into the woods where two yellowish eyes were still spying on them.

“You have seen enough. Run home, _doggy_. _While you still can_.” Then he turned his back to the shifter and stepped inside the house, closing the door behind himself, the lock sliding in place a couple of seconds later.

Aro carried Bella through the house, past Renata who was reclining on the windowsill and busily hitting the keys.

Dare he think she had gotten a sudden inspiration from watching his angel and Aro fly?

The possibilities! Sometimes he amused himself by imagining the possible intentions of his closest people because he knew that one touch would erase all of his prior speculation. And he was right so many times, because he _knew_ how their minds worked. He simply… knew them. But _sometimes_ they managed to act completely unpredictable. Do something unexpected. Most of the time, he loved when this happened. When his family surprised him. Otherwise, life would be infinitely dull.

He entered Isabella’s room, rolled open the duvet and laid her on the sheets.

Two water bottles flew in from the kitchen and dropped on the bed.

Now he just had to wake her up.

“Angel?” Aro called as he caressed her cheek and brushed her long locks from her face. “Wake up.”

Isabella weakly batted his hands away and buried her face in the pillow.

“Five more minutes, Mom.” Isabella mumbled.

“ _Angel_.” Aro said much louder and harsher. “ _Wake up_.”

Her eyes opened and she slowly turned around to look at him.

“…Aro?” Isabella confusedly whispered. It was evident she was disoriented. Not unsurprising.

She slowly pulled herself up, blinking her eyes sleepily.

Aro pressed an open water bottle in her hands. “Drink all of this.”

She gingerly lifted the water bottle to her lips and started to drink, questions swimming in her sleepy eyes.

“You lost more than two pints of blood, child. You need to get fluids back in you.”

A few moments passed until she placed the empty bottle on the nightstand and reached for the second one.

“The exhaustion you are currently feeling should fade during the night. You will feel much better in the morning.” She had almost finished the second bottle.

“We will depart before first light to catch the sun emerging from the ocean. Renata or I will wake you, if you will still be sleeping by then.”

“Okay.” Isabella agreed as she sunk down on the bed and under the duvet, and looked at him with tired, sleepy eyes. “How long do I get to sleep before I have to get up?”

“It is eight in the evening, so about ten hours.” Aro quietly replied.

“Alright.” She said as she let her eyelids fall closed.

“Sweet dreams, child.”

***

Aro sat down on _not his sofa_ so that he could watch Renata work.

She was not aware of this, but her face became exceptionally expressive when she was writing. Not that Renata was not expressive most of the time. She was one of the most animated vampires Aro had the pleasure of knowing. Still, it was different when a story was being constructed in her mind and put into words. He could witness the reflection of emotions he had never seen in her when she was… not writing. Witness this… _silent... focused happiness_.

Aro loved watching her write.

“ _Stai fissando, Padrone_.” Renata stated, not lifting her eyes from the screen as she continued typing.

“ _Sì_.” Aro confessed candidly.

The corners of her lips curled up in a quick smile before her expression smoothed over.

“ _The dog left four hours ago, after you had been staring at me for about an hour already. I think he got bored. Or cold. I can’t decide. Both, perhaps? His legs and tail had started shaking._ ” Renata thought out loudly with a light crease between her brows.

“ _I am a little disappointed I did not manage to get in a good kick, or any kick, for that matter. Perhaps he will return later…_ ”

“His mistake.”

“It will be. … _Well?_ Did Bella enjoy flying?”

“She absolutely loved it.” Aro smiled.

“And did you enjoy her blood?”

“I did. It was incredibly lovely, Renata. One of the best I have had in a long while.”

“I’m glad.” Renata sincerely said before recommencing her typing.

Which reminded him-

Aro swiftly went to his room and returned to his previous spot with his own laptop.

He reached for his Blackberry, which was still soundly lying on the low table and opened Carlisle’s message, which contained his email address.

Then Aro selected a few dozen of the most interesting _Carly-friendly_ research projects from Valerian Incorporated servers and proceeded to encrypt them to Atlantis and back, before sending them to Carlisle.

Aro’s Blackberry lit up and started ringing.

He picked the phone up from the table and saw it was an Incoming Call from-

_Phillippa?_

How… unexpected. _Why was she calling him?_ Perhaps she wanted to thank him for her Christmas present? _Or yell at him for her **other** Christmas present_. A grin worked its way on his face.

Aro accepted the call.

“It is ever so lovely _if slightly surprising_ to hear from you, darling Phillippa!” Aro merrily greeted his drinking buddy.

What he _did not expect_ was to hear the heart-wrenching sob of his friend. Renata's head shot up from her work, a startled look on her lovely face.

“… ** _Aro_**.” Another sob. Aro was not smiling anymore.

“What is the matter, my friend?” Aro asked in genuine concern. It was so unlike for his friend to be this distressed.

“ ** _Master Aro_**. _Nobody else is picking up their fucking phone_.” Aro could hear sniffling, and then Phillippa asked in a hopeless, tearful voice, “ _Are you home yet_? … _please be home_.”

“I’m afraid not, darling. I’m still in America.” Another soul-crushing sob. It pained him to listen to her crying. Phillippa had not shed a single tear when Aro had fed on her, why was she crying _now_?

“ _Darling_ , what is wrong?” Aro asked again. He had a bad feeling -

“ _I killed Felix_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I believe this may very well be the darkest chapter yet.
> 
> Nevertheless. I hope you enjoyed it all the same. 
> 
> (Another thing. I hope you do not take Bella's pov for granted. It is... not one hundred per cent reliable, as you may have noticed. Aro and Renata do not always tell the truth, or the full, unabridged truth, plus the whole vampire thing/world/existence has just been sprung on her, so Bella still lacks a broader perspective on the supernatural world. And in the end of the night, she is still just a teenager. I believe it is not fair to expect absolute wisdom from her anyhow.)  
> 
> 
> _Lui è ancora qui. (Italian)_ – He’s still here.
> 
>  _Sì, lo è. (Italian)_ – Yes, he is. 
> 
> _Stai fissando, Padrone. (Italian)_ \- You are staring, Master.
> 
>   
> Thank you for reading. Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated. ❤


	14. My friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Thoughts of death/dying; excessive use of alcohol

_11:06 a.m., December 24, 4 Via Pianforti, La Sterza, Tuscany, Italy_

Phillippa Camilli was in her kitchen, alone.

She had dressed in a long, white silk shirt-dress (a present from Heidi), purple leggings and a cute white apron with orange cats on it, which was thrown over her clothes because she was rolling out gingerbread dough and sprinkling flour on it ( _and on herself_ ) so that the gingerbread wouldn’t stick to the dough roll.

Christmas music was playing loudly from the radio on the windowsill behind her. 

Phillippa’s family had gone to Pisa to see _The Polar Express_ about an hour ago. Her little brother had wanted Phillippa to come with him and their parents, but she just… couldn’t.

The slices of the dark brown dough had become warm enough to easily roll out on the kitchen countertop.

All those children with _futures_ in the movie theatre. Innocent miniature humans. Completely oblivious to the horrors of the world.

The dark dough smelled strongly of Christmas spices. 

Nutmeg. 

Oblivious to the monsters living among them.

Cardamom.

Oblivious to the possibility of never coming home from school. From the park. From the library. Or a shop.

_Their best friend’s house._

_Cinnamon._

Oblivious to the very real possibility of their parents never returning home to them.

 ** _Anise_**.

Of course, if you were a resident of Volterra, you had zero per cent to worry about any of the aforementioned calamities.

 ** _CLOVES_**.

Phillippa was not up to torturing herself this last Christmas she had.

Thus she had feigned a cold after arriving home from the Castle this morning and apologised a hundred times to little Leo, promising her brother to go with him _next time_ (a promise Phillippa knew she was going to break).

He had forgiven her, as she knew he would. Leonardo was such a sweet boy. She shuddered at the thought of her little brother ever meeting her friends. Meeting _him_.

Phillippa had asked Heidi, about four months ago, morbid curiosity winning over her repulsion of getting the answer to the question which she had been puzzled over for months (seven times tourists had walked past her desk, never to return) since she had become the Volturi Secretary – the question as to why there were almost always children in the tourist groups Heidi brought to the Castle. A couple of times she had seen Heidi leading children in the throne room by hand. No parents in sight. It was why she had become curious.

Logically, it was a bit odd. The tourists were brought to the Castle in busses. There were fixed number of seats in any bus (of course, sometimes children were tourists too, but… it was not as common.)

Logically, children had less blood in them than adults. _Several litres less blood_.

It did not add up. Not really. (What difference were a few litres, many might ask. Phillippa, however, was not as willing to overlook this, perhaps, ‘inconsequential’ detail. Vampires loved blood. The more the better. _Usually_. This she knew very well. So it had her wondering.)

It turned out that Heidi was looking _specifically_ for tourist groups with children present, _because they were Master Aro’s favourite_.

Phillippa had been sorry she had asked. So fucking sorry.

Sometimes Heidi snatched some unsuspecting kid from the street, if there was nobody looking. (Heidi’s allure worked on the little humans as well as on regular adults).

 _Phillippa was so, so fucking sorry_.

She had had a very, _very_ serious talk with Leo a couple of months ago. She had explained to him in length why he should be very, _very_ careful when talking to strangers. Phillippa had tried to not scare him ~~permanently~~ (and she believed she had been successful). She’d just wanted to… impart much needed caution from literally anyone he should ever meet.

Not that she had done this only with vampires in mind.

People, _humans_ , often were much more twisted.

There were so many sick people in the world, after all.

Vampires… their cardinal imperative would almost always be blood. Most of the time they would be interested in humans only because they served as dinner for the Undead. _Food_. Humans were simply… food. To vampires.

Master Aro had said as much, when she had asked him once (after the umpteenth time he had seemingly unconsciously substituted the word ‘humans’ with the word ‘food’ in simple conversation).

He had also talked about how many ordinary, unsuspecting and plain _boring_ people hid monsters under their sheep’s skin. And considering the staggering proportion of humans to vampires in the world? It had been fuel to many a night terror of hers. Few minutes and it would be over if a vampire decided they wanted to eat you.

But _humans_?

Phillippa had cautioned little Leo to never _ever_ go **anywhere** with **_anyone_** who was not direct family. No matter how nice these strangers might be, how pretty, how interesting, how many puppies they had with them or _somewhere a little further beyond the playground_ … how seemingly trusting they appeared.

Especially if they asked for Leo’s help.

(Sue her, but what self-respecting adult would possibly need _or ask for_ the help of children? _No one_ , _that’s who_.)

Not his teachers, not their neighbours, not his friends’ families, nor any strangers and especially not any beautiful strangers.

Phillippa had made him repeat countless times to “ _Beware beautiful strangers with red or dark eyes_ ” until it was engraved in his young and impressionable brain.

Her Mom had not been amused. She had not said anything, not exactly, but Phillippa saw she was not fully okay with the things Phillippa had said to little Leo.

Giuseppe. He had not said anything _either_ , but she could see he was very suspicious. He most likely knew there was a _very good_ _reason_ she was saying these things to her brother.

Phillippa could only hope her parents would beware beautiful strangers with red or dark eyes themselves.

Master Aro had not mentioned anything to her about this. Which had been… a tremendous relief. She had been so fucking careful with what to tell Leonardo. Of just _how much_ she could safely get away with revealing. Not one word too much, not one hint too obvious.

This was not completely fool-proof either, she knew that. Phillippa had seen Master Aro with contact lenses before. Brown. Green. Grey. His favourites were sky blue ones (Phillippa had a nagging feeling that it had been his natural eye colour when Aro had been human.)

Aro. … _A human._

Phillippa’s kitchen was suddenly filled with hysterical chortles as she burst into loud laughter. (It was that funny. _Hilarious, even_. Best joke of the century).

She did not believe such a thing had ever existed. That such a time had existed, when Master Aro had been human. _Theoretically_? Sure. There really could have been no other way. Vampires did not magically materialise out of thin air. _Practically_? It was just as impossible to wrap her mind around as the idea of the edge of the Universe. Where did the Universe end? Or was it endless? How _could_ it be? And if it was _not_ endless? What was beyond it? Nothing? How could there be _nothing_? What _was_ this nothing, then? There had to be _something_ , right? Wha-

People’s minds were not supposed to contemplate such things, _surely_. Just as they were not supposed to try to imagine Master Aro as a human. It was a _total **mindfuck**_. _Mi dispiace, Padrone Aro_.

He did not seem _real_ , when he wore the blue contacts. No one should be able to look _that beautiful_. That… _otherworldly_.

There was a mountain of gingerbread cookie cutters on the counter top. Her absolute favourite forms were the reindeer head with antlers, the cat, and the dolphin. Leo loved the stars and the dinosaurs. Mom loved hearts and angels. Phillippa found it incredibly amusing. Cold, dead hearts of beautiful angels (certainly not the association her Mom had to these symbols). It was too morbid to think about at Phillippa’s Death’s Doorstep.

Giuseppe did not have any favourites, _bless that man_.

Her Mom had been glad that Phillippa had opted to stay at home due to her ‘cold’, “ _behaving like a responsible adult_ ” and all that shit because Phillippa was a damn good actress, if she could say so herself.

Her step-dad had seen through her (he was a Physics Professor at a university in Pontedera. Of course he could see through her bullshit. He had been lied to indiscernible number of times by lazy, failing, cheating, arrogant ~~assholes~~ students so he could tell without trying when he was being bullshitted) but thankfully hadn't called her out on her lies, he had just let her be. They were good friends, Giuseppe and Phillippa.

So now, with her family gone for an hour already, she had at least until five before they returned.

Phillippa had six whole hours to _not_ pretend that “ _everything is great, Mom”_ , that “ _of course_ _nothing is wrong at work, Mom! Why are you asking me this, Mom?_ ”, that “ _No! I’m not seeing anyone, Mom!_ ” and that the world she lived in was the same world they lived in.

Because it wasn’t. Not _anymore_.

And this was Phillippa’s last Christmas.

 _Anyway_.

She had dressed in one of the most unsuspicious presents the vampires had given to her and one of the few that she could safely take home with her, no questions asked, and had set out to bake the last sodding gingerbread cookies she was ever going to be able to bake. It was one of the things on her bucket list after all. _~~Nr.9 Bake Gingerbr~~ ead Cookies _(currently in progress).

Phillippa had been so relieved when Master Aro had not returned yesterday morning with the rest of the Guard from Japan. She had heard from those who _had_ returned from the mission that Master Aro and Renata had extended their leave and had gone to see one of Master Aro’s old friends who lived in the States.

Not that she did not like Aro. Just the opposite really. Aro was… _amazing_. Phillippa would even go as far as to say that she… loved him. Which was ridiculous and crazy and all sorts of stupid, knowing what she knew.

She had come to like the vampires she worked for.

 _Monsters_.

The ruthless killers.

 **_Her friends_**.

They were monsters. But Phillippa had had plenty of time to get to know them, to think about Life, her life, their life (or existence, as they mostly preferred to refer to their continuous undead state of being), the world, her fate, their fate, _the Fate_ (she knew this was something she had contracted from Master Aro. Phillippa was fairly sure that prolonged exposure to him would make the sanest person turn mad in a very short while. And believing in Fate as a Divine Force was the lesser evil that could be contracted from him, _in her humble opinion, of course_ ).

She had come to the despondent conclusion that all of the vampires in the Castle had been cursed to become monsters, one way or another. And had been more _or_ _less_ willing to join the Undead.

At the beginning, in the first few weeks of her employment at the Castle of Volterra, she had heard more from the vampires than they ever believed she had picked up. They had not yet started to filter what they said around her (it was before they had miraculously, one by one, come to like her) as she had been just another one of their dispensable secretaries. They had treated her as a… decoration. Something… not worth their attention when they did not have some kind of need for her.

It had been hard. Those first few weeks. After… perhaps it had become even harder, once she had slowly started to like the vampires she lived together with and they, in turn, had come to like _her_.

Phillippa saw them far more than her actual family.

The dreadful thought of just how fucking many secretaries had worked there and gone missing entered her mind on the third night at the Castle when she had been attempting to fall asleep in her honest-to-God royal rooms (she had been shown to a set of rooms not far from Renata’s and Master Aro’s chambers, which she soon after learned was for her protection, however miniscule it might have been) and she had had a panic attack which had gone on for twenty minutes. It had been much worse than those other twenty minutes on her first day that she had spent crying in the bathroom during her lunch break.

She had pieced together quite a lot. In the beginning. Such that there had been… _a lot_. And she meant **_A LOT_** of secretaries before Phillippa had taken the cursed post. And all of them had been killed by the same vampires that roamed the Castle now as they did thirty six years ago.

She learned that the previous secretaries were most often killed by Felix, Demetri or Caius, but other times by practically any other member of the Volturi Family.

She had learned that the vampires she lived with were the royalty among their kind.

She had learned that Aro, Marcus and Caius were the kings of the vampire world. That Aro was the one who called the shots.

Everything always came back to Aro.

_Her future murderer._

How awful was it, to know your soon-to-be killer, _your Fate,_ and at the same time love this person with all her soul?

She was not in love with him. (Fate have mercy on those unlucky who were.)

But she loved him all the same. He was… impossible not to love.

She had never met anyone, _anyone_ like him. He was not even alike any vampire she had met in her eleven and a half month employ at the Castle.

He was _brilliant_.

The most beautiful being she had ever met.

And insane.

 _God_.

He was _totally bonkers_.

One only needed to hear his unhinged laugh to tell as much. Nothing else. Just one laugh and Phillippa had known.

But… _in the very end_? It did not matter. Aro was… Aro. And Phillippa loved him despite him being… _slightly mad_.

Phillippa turned the dough on the other side, sprinkled more flour on the dark gingerbread and continued to roll it out.

She had learned that there were **_rules_**.

Strict rules all vampires had to follow or else they got eliminated. By the Guard or by one of the kings.

And she had learned that besides the three main ones, there was now a fourth rule, which was… _Do not kill the Volturi Secretaries_. But… as the vamps were a gossipy bunch she soon learned that the **real** fourth rule was: … _Only Aro was allowed to kill the Volturi Secretaries_.

The story behind this, supposedly, was that Aro had had enough and had prohibited his Guard and his fellow rulers, and basically _any_ other vampire, from killing her, as she was holding the cursed Secretary position now. The lucky first one since the rule had been issued.

Thus she knew Aro would be the one to kill her, in the end.

Hence she had been relieved when he had not returned home with the others.

It meant she got to spend one last Christmas with her family. Her mother. Her little brother. Giuseppe.

Because Phillippa had an unshakeable feeling that she was going to die soon.

Unexplainable.

But she was certain of it.

As certain as the sun rising on the east in the morning and setting on the west in the evening.

She had heard before starting her new-awful-unfortunate job at the Castle that some people could feel their time running out, so they rushed to finish all their unfinished projects, do something they felt was really important to them because _they knew_ , unconsciously, _deep down_ , that they were on a deadline.

A premonition.

A sensation.

Phillippa had not believed such things to be real. Now… she was one of those people.

She had even written a bucket list:

**~~1\. GET DRUNK. TOTALLY HAMMERED~~ **

Phillippa had done this first thing since the bright idea to write her own bucket list had appeared in her mind and refused to leave. She had never been totally drunk, a little buzzed, sure, but not stupid drunk. She knew she could not do this at home or at some bar, too high of a chance of her getting chatty and spilling some very sensitive vampiric information to the wrong ears. She had had the insane idea to visit the Castle’s wine cellar. Phillippa had been given a quick tour by Jane on her first day for appearances sake which had included the wine cellar near the kitchen which she had been allowed to use to her fullest desires while she resided in the Castle.  
  
Phillippa had been amazed by the sheer size of the cellar and the collection of all sorts of vintages. There were thousands of bottles. On first glance she had wagered the whole cellar’s contents to cost about eight to nine hundred thousand euros. On closer inspection later on, her estimate had gone up to three point two million.

She had chosen a bottle of _1985_ (her birth year) _Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia Bolgheri, Tuscany, Italy_ red wine (she had no idea how much it cost, but she had not been forbidden from helping herself to a few bottles and had chosen to translate ‘using the kitchen to her fullest desires’ to include the wine cellar which, by design, could be seen as an extension of the kitchen) to start with.

She had sat down at the fancy pink marble table in the spacious kitchen with a large wine glass and her _possibly, very possibly and most probably stolen_ bottle. She had barely finished half a glass when Master Aro had appeared in the kitchen out of nowhere and proceeded to join her. She had been quite spooked. Phillippa had thought she was going to be reprimanded or forbidden from touching the wine, but Master Aro had been _So Fucking Pleased_.

Master Aro had entered the cellar and taken another twenty bottles with him and deposited all of them on the pink table. Then they both had gotten flat out drunk together.

From what she had observed and understood of vampires, they drank blood. Primarily. Preferably. And alcohol did practically nothing to them. _She had been wrong_. Master Aro had given quite the comprehensible account of what turned out to be _his_ wine collection, the history behind most of the contents – which bottle or barrel had been a gift, which he had ordered, which he had searched for, his favourite ones, a particularly good or bad year.  
  
She had gotten pretty drunk from the one bottle she had chosen (‘ _A very fine choice, Signorina Camilli. I, myself, prefer Pinot Noir, most of the time_ ’).

In the time period she had finished one bottle, Master Aro had finished five. He had started on the fifteen remaining ones, and with each new bottle he opened and finished, he poured half a glass for Phillippa to sample for herself, all the while commenting about each particular wine bottle, ‘ _to know the difference, dear child_ ’.  
  
She had had such a great time, all her worries had magically disappeared and she had been so happy after the seventh newly opened bottle. Aro had been visibly tipsy, she could tell by the way his eyes had travelled around and had difficulty focusing on a single point for long and how his speech had fluctuated between Italian, French and English. Because she had been drunk herself, she had not noticed this particular sign that night, only the next morning when she rewound the events of the previous evening. Plus, she had understood everything so it had not rang any major alarm bells to her at the time. _Plus_ , Master Aro had accidentally pushed an empty bottle on the stone floor which had shattered and made a pretty loud noise, which had been greatly amusing when it had happened.  
  
Everything had been amusing at the time. _Funny_. So fucking funny. However, it had the unforeseen consequence of Renata showing up a few seconds later and causing **_A Scene_**.

Phillippa was so fucking glad she had fantastic memory. She remembered practically everything in perfect detail. Some people called it an eidetic memory but she was not so sure. At least Giuseppe thought so too. So… _perhaps_.

Anyway, she had been slumped on the pink table top, as her coordination had taken a leave of absence, her head spinning, her eyes half lidded, as the lights in the kitchen had become very confusing, and lacking focus herself, but she remembered how Renata had yelled at Aro about his addiction, alcoholism, blood, him being a bad influence, an enabler, a _fucking drunk old man_ (that had been _fan-fucking-tastic_ ), before Phillippa’s eyes had closed on their own accord and she had slid off the table to the ground and passed out.  
  
She had woken up the next morning in her room, clothed in her nightclothes, in her bed, and on her side. It had been a nice gesture from Renata. Plus, Renata must have caught her before she could hit the stone floor because Phillippa could tell that she hadn’t hit her head.

Additionally, Phillippa had woken with a murderous headache and an even worse hangover. She swore to never ever, _ever_ drink with Master Aro again, but her oath to herself lasted only until the next month when she had gone to the kitchen late at night because nightmares had kept her up and had joined him at his invitation, against her better judgement, and it had ended the same way as her first endeavour.  
  
 _Aro really was a terrible influence._ It had been absolutely priceless when Renata had had enough the seventh time she had found them the moment Aro was pouring Phillippa another glass, while they both sang ‘To Anacreon in Heaven’ (her drinking buddy had such a devious sense of humour sometimes), nineteen empty bottles littering the table and the floor, and had somehow, Phillippa had no idea _how_ and she so wanted to find out, gotten _Marcus_ , **_Master Marcus!_** the most gloomy fucking vampire in the whole Castle to come down _himself_ and see what was happening and _God_ had Marcus laid into Aro.  
  
It probably would have been frightening if it hadn’t been so entertaining. Renata had whisked her away pretty soon after, but she had heard a part of the verbal lashing Master Marcus had given Aro - about how it was not healthy for Phillippa to be drinking this much, that it was **_all Aro’s fault_** because of the huge power imbalance between them, about _abuse of authority_ because Phillippa supposedly could not refuse Aro as he was her boss, a vampire, a fucking king, and thousand times stronger than her and that Phillippa was not someone called Carlisle (by now she knew very well who Carlisle was) and could not keep up with Aro ( _Excuse you, Marcus!_ ) and that Aro was so much more older than her so he should ‘ _fucking know better’_ , that there was a thing called _alcohol poisoning_ and whether Aro wanted to put Phillippa in a hospital… God, it had been so sweet and utterly ridiculous. Aro was going to kill her one way or another, what difference did it make? But Marcus had been so very sweet. For a moment it had felt to her as if Master Marcus really cared.

**~~2\. ROB THE VAMPIRES BLIND~~ **

Well. Not exactly. She would never get away with blatantly stealing something from the Castle and she was not suicidal, okay? Just the opposite. But as it turned out, vampires loved to play poker. Texas Hold Them. Sweet Jesus. It had taken some time, but as the vampires’ attitude towards her had changed after two months of her being their secretary, she had gotten an invite from Heidi after Phillippa had strategically ‘let slip’ that she loved playing poker but could not do so anymore because she had so few holidays now.

And shouldn’t that have been a tip-off for her when interviewing for the vacant secretary post? _Or the fucking ridiculous five digit monthly salary?_ Let it be said that Phillippa Willmore was such a fucking _imbecile_. Phillippa knew that she had one ginormous character flaw, and that was GREED. She could not help herself. She should have known it would be her ultimate undoing.

Nevertheless, she had gotten her invite. Giuseppe had taught her the basics but the game was not all that difficult. Especially if one had eidetic memory to rely on, counting cards was just second nature to her, and the fantastically powerful force of GREED that kept her voice and heartbeat, and her breathing, and her micro expressions, and body language in check.

Through the entirety of the games.  
  
In the eleven and a half months, since she had started to work at the Castle from January 6, 2004, she had been invited to four games and had won twelve point seven million euros, four point six in the last one yesterday.

Phillippa knew that going to Florence and studying art was not in the cards for her anymore, but. She had set a trust fund for Leonardo and two separate accounts for Mom and Giuseppe. At least her little brother would be able to study or do anything he desired now, anywhere. Phillippa knew his current career aspiration was to become a pilot. He could very easily grow out of this idea, he was only six years old, after all, but if he didn’t? He could become a pilot. The issue of tuition would not stand in the way of his dreams. Her parents, well, they would be able to travel, to anywhere their hearts desired now. Perhaps they would move to another place entirely, if the memories of her in their home would be too much for her Mom to handle.  
  
Phillippa had briefly entertained the thought of running. She had the money, plenty to make even more easily by investing shrewdly, but she had discarded the idea only seconds after it had entered her mind. Because _Her Family_. She could afford to do nothing to jeopardise their safety. Because _Demetri_. And even if they did not have Demetri with them, Phillippa had no illusions the Volturi would not find her in less than a week. So she made the deposits into her newly opened accounts, wrote her will and entrusted her lawyer to do his fucking part when she died or had been missing for longer than three months.

She harboured no hope that the vampires would send her body back to her parents or that her body would ever be even found. They had some kind of a fail-proof system in place for all the tourists they ate monthly. They made twenty to forty dead bodies disappear without a trace _every month_. Phillippa did not know how. It was… so horrifying that her brain shied away from the mere thought. It was very hard to think about this, even now. And she had to see the tourists being led in every month by her close friend Heidi, who she had started to see as a sister, to listen to her drinking buddy Aro jovially speak about the history of the Castle, the throne room itself, the stained glass paintings, how the people kept taking pictures and asking questions for five to ten minutes before the screaming started.

God, the screaming.

She could easily hear everything through the door. It was not fucking soundproofed. She had been scared out of her mind the first time it had happened. She had not known. Had not even considered the possibility of such a thing taking place. Phillippa did not know how she had managed it, but she had not puked all over her desk or the carpeted floor, she had just sat there and let silent tears fall. When the screaming had finally ended five minutes later, there was no evidence left, other than her red rimmed eyes and her paled disposition.

It was utterly horrible to admit, but the last five times she had barely noticed the tourists being led past her desk or their terrified screams. What did that say about her? As a fellow human being?

That first month and a half. She had seen the stares, the anger, Master Caius had been so hostile, _never outright rude_ , but he had looked so pissed. Not only at her, but at everyone, except for his wife. Caius loved his wife more than life itself. But if looks could kill, Master Aro would be dead thrice over. As would Phillippa. And Heidi, Alec and Jane. She had pieced together that her blood smelled (apparently every human had a specific, more or less tasty flavour) very, _very_ appealing to all of them.

They all (except for Heidi, Alec, Jane, Renata and Masters Aro and Marcus) had been so angry and miserable, they’d looked at her the same way a cat looked at a bird in a cage, it had been awful. After a while though, they had stopped. Nobody paid her such looks anymore. Not even Master Caius. He put on a very believable performance of hating her guts, but she knew he liked her well enough.

Just as she knew she was going to die soon.

**~~3\. NOT TO DIE A VIRGIN~~ **

Now this had proven to be problematic to cross out of her bucket list. She had thought she had a bit more time, but she had been so fucking busy with her responsibilities of the job and she did have only two free days every month (and wasn’t that some kind of major labour law breach?), which she always used to go see her family as she never knew whether it would be the last time she saw them. It felt like such an egotistical thing to do. Finding some guy to hook up with versus going to see her little brother and her Mom and Giuseppe for perhaps the last time in her and their lives.

Plus she did not exactly fancy the idea of having a quick meaningless fuck with some nameless bloke. _She had tried, alright?_ To find a nice, attractive guy in Volterra a few nights after her working hours had ended a couple of months back, but she had had a feeling that someone was watching her, _following her_ , and of course, on the third night out just when she had been chatting with a really hot guy, perhaps even _The Chosen One_ , she had spotted the lurking silhouette of Felix through the restaurant’s window. No wonder she felt followed. Well, she could have gone home with Alfonso, but it would probably mean Felix and possibly anyone else he had with him listening in on the whole thing. Vampires had fucking awful sense of boundaries sometimes ~~(none)~~. So she had not gone to Alfonso’s place that evening.

Phillippa knew the window of opportunity will last only so long as the mission in Japan, until Aro returned home. And it had the fortunate property of Felix being convenient nine thousand six hundred and seventy-three kilometres away from Volterra.

She had gotten Alfonso’s number that October night and had called him. And he had been more than happy to help her scratch off this entry on her bucket list.

**~~4\. BUY SOMETHING OUTRAGEOUS~~ **

Phillippa had gone to Florence one evening after work and bought a gorgeous wedding dress. White, silk. Lace. It had cost a small fortune. The veil too. And white wedding sandals. She knew she was never going to get married, never wear it for real, but at least she got to play out this little fantasy of hers one September evening to soothe her aching soul. ~~~~

**~~5\. MAKE A CONFESSION~~ **

Phillippa had thought long and hard about this particular wish on her list. She had never been an overly zealous religious person. However, she _was_ a catholic. She had gone to church with her family every month for years, until her overpaid job at the Castle of Volterra began. Instead of going with her family, she sometimes went to Chiesa di San Francesco in Volterra after her working hours for the day had ended.

It was a feeling. That this was something Phillippa should do before she died. Some people never got the chance to confess their sins. Pros and cons of dying a quick, sudden death versus having a fairly accurate time estimate of several months beforehand and being able to get one’s affairs in order. It was not dissimilar to having a terminal disease. Like being diagnosed with stage four lung cancer but deciding against any kind of treatment and spending as much time they had left not being poisoned to death with chemicals and radiation.

If Phillippa had harboured any desperate hopes of living even half a year longer, they had been utterly crushed the morning of Master Aro, Renata, Jane, Demetri, Felix, Lily, Jacques and Emil’s leaving for Japan. She had woken up in her bed, twenty metre distance away from Aro’s lounge. The memory of the walk back to her rooms barely there, _but it was there_. As was everything else that had happened the night before.

Phillippa remembered everything. Everything. It is why she had never called or accepted Giuseppe as her father, even if he had adopted her and given her his last name. Phillippa remembered her Real Dad in crystal clear detail to this very moment. She had never forgotten him. Robert Willmore will forever be engraved in her memory. The time she had spent with him. As will the car accident they both suffered in, which resulted in an instant death of her father and a three months long and excruciating stay in a hospital for Phillippa. The only reason she had survived was because she had been in the backseat and because she had been so _small_. It later turned out that the driver of the truck that had collided with their car had fallen asleep behind the wheel. It had happened so fast. Without any warning-

And because she remembered **_everything_** , she remembered leaving Aro’s chambers after they finished all the bottles he had in his rooms (neither Phillippa, nor Aro had been in any condition to go retrieve more from the kitchen (she had been surprised she had been able to stay on her feet much less walk on her own)). Aro had been so out of it he had not even responded to her goodbyes and well wishes for safe travels. Phillippa had noticed, in the total of nineteen drinking parties they’ve had, that when Aro drunk more than fifteen bottles of Madeira wine he… did not remember some things that had happened after. Phillippa had a theory that it was not exactly the case. Master Aro had given the excuse of his memory being ‘foggy’, on several occasions. Thus Phillippa thought that he did remember, but due to the distortion of these memories, he did not like to revisit them.

Phillippa had thrown up that morning when she fully remembered all the things Aro had spilled about his _ardently beloved sister_. And not because of her hangover. It was… There was _no name_ for what his sister had been.

And when the crushing comprehension of what it meant to possess the knowledge of Aro’s sister had dawned on Phillippa she had thrown up for the second time.

She knew Aro did not remember telling her. He had had nineteen bottles of Madeira wine for himself that night. And if he had remembered telling her, he would have killed her before going to Japan. Thus she could only conclude that he did not, in fact, remember. She had been jumpy the first few days, waiting for any of her friends who had stayed at the castle to permanently silence her, but nothing had happened.

However. It meant she had only until the next time her friend touched her. And let it be said that Aro _loved touching her_. It had become a little weird. It was as if he used any opportunity he could get away with to read her thoughts. Never too long, but she knew he needed only a single brush to get what he needed. _Not several seconds_. And especially not this often.

She had noticed the pattern starting in July.

Initially she had theorised that he was checking whether or not she had _TALKED_.

But he should know Phillippa valued her family’s lives too highly to ever say a single thing about the Undead to _anyone_.

It was strange. It was as if he was constantly searching for something, but never quite finding it. But he kept on searching. An answer to some question he had never asked her.

_What question?_

Well. It did not matter anymore.

Nothing did.

In the end she had chosen to go to the church her family had gone to every month for years. It stood only three kilometres away from her family house. She had gone there the first day off she had had in December. It had been _December 11 th…_

*

_Father Tommaso was a middle aged man who had been the priest of Chiesa Parrocchia Di San Leonardo Abate In Laiatico for as long as Phillippa remembered. He was a very nice man. It was perhaps not too bright of her to make a confession to someone who would recognise her, but she felt comfortable with him. Phillippa knew him. It made this whole miserable affair a little bit more bearable._

_She entered the confessional booth and sat down on the chair._

_Phillippa lifted her right hand, crossed herself and bowed her head._

_“Nel nome del Padre e del Figlio e dello Spirito Santo. Amen.”_

_She saw through the latticed partition Father Tommaso making the sign of the cross as well, holding a rosary in his right hand._

_“Buongiorno, Signorina Camilli.” Father Tommaso welcomed her and made her smile. Nobody really called her like this except-_

_“Buongiorno, Padre Tommaso.” Phillippa cordially greeted her priest._

_“What has brought you here today, my dear?” Father Tommaso asked in mild curiosity. She had never confessed before. Phillippa was quite certain he was well aware of this fact._

_“Confession.” Was her simple answer._

_“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. This is my first confession.” Phillippa said. She wanted there to not be any ambiguousness to the nature of their conversation. None._

_“Go on, my child.” Her priest said as the silence drew a little too long._

_“I always thought greed was my biggest sin, Father. And to be perfectly honest, it has been the catalyst that has brought me to this… dead end of my life. For I do not see any hope for escaping my Fate.”_

_“Phillippa? What has happened to have led you to think this?” Father Tommaso sounded very concerned. It was quite touching. She knew he cared. He had known her for more than ten years now._

_“I am going to die very soon, Father.” Phillippa admitted levelly. She had accepted this quite a while ago. Months ago. There really was no other choice but to accept the truth. She heard Father Tommaso’s breath catching. She would have never been able to perceive it, if she had not lived with vampires for nearly a year now. They were so quiet they had been impossible to hear, so fast, they had been impossible to see. But after six and a half months of living among them, she had started to hear them walking around the Castle. Hear their inaudible conversations. See their invisible passing by._

_“Are you ill, Phillippa?” Her priest asked with heavy concern. Understandable. She was only nineteen years old._

_“Not at all, Father.” Phillippa frankly confessed. “A dear friend of mine is going to kill me.”_

_Father Tommaso’s shocked silence filled the air around him. His heart was racing. He leaned further towards the see through partition._

_“Phillippa! Are you… certain of this? Why would you possibly think so, my child?”_

_“Because it is the truth?” Phillippa turned her head to see the priest's wide eyes. She smiled one of Master Aro’s sad smiles. “I do not blame him. My friend. I’ve already forgiven him.”_

_“Yes. I can see that you have.” Father Tommaso said in a grave voice._

_“I lie all the time now, Father. To my family. They do not know. Anything. And about me dying, of course.” Phillippa said. A tear rolled down her cheek. “If I had not lied he would kill them too. It is the only way I can protect my family. It is also the only way I can protect my friend. And **his** family.”_

_There was a long pause._

_Phillippa could hear wind howling outside. Not another soul in the church or its vicinity but her and Father Tommaso. She had chosen the time of the day when the least amount of people usually came to the church. It would not do for anyone to overhear even one lone word of hers._

_“Go on.” He said after a sobering moment._

_“In the past eleven months I have watched two hundred and ninety-six men and women… and seven children unwittingly walk to their deaths. Without the slightest suspicion.” Phillippa whispered._

_Father Tommaso’s hands were shaking. His heart was beating so loudly. Because he could tell she wasn’t lying._

_“Dear Lord…”_

_“There is nothing I could have done to save them, Father. Absolutely nothing. My friend says it was- **is** their Fate. That Fate had long ago decided it would be their time to die, that their deaths were predestined before they were even born. Written in the lovely stars.” Phillippa said. “Could this be true after all, how do you think?”_

_“Child… You cannot forget we all have been given free will to choose our path under God’s guidance.”_

_“Free… will. All I ever wanted was to become an artist. To paint. Not… have my soul ripped apart by the truth of the world.” Phillippa whispered in a strangled voice._

_“The last five times I had been barely troubled by the sight of them walking past me.”_

_“The… people who died?”_

_“Yes.”_

_“Why haven’t you gone to the authorities with this knowledge?” Father Tommaso cautiously asked, but it was clear he was very frightened._

_“I cannot risk my family’s lives. In any case, I don’t see a way the police haven’t been aware for years. They **must** know.”_

_“The person you keep mentioning. …Your friend. Did he kill all those people, Phillippa?” Father Tommaso asked but Phillippa could see he was deeply shaken by their conversation._

_“No.” Phillippa voiced. She did not believe Aro had eaten many of the adults. “I do not believe so. Perhaps only two or three of them. …And all the children.” Phillippa heard him grip his rosary in a very tight hold. She was surprised the beads did not break apart and scatter every which way on the floor of the darkened box._

_“Why, Phillippa?” Phillippa had never seen him so pale before. It could not be good for his heart._

_“I’m not at liberty to say. Even here. Even to you, Father Tommaso. If you knew why, he would come here and kill you too. I don’t want that.” Phillippa heard him swallow loudly._

_“Does he know you have come here? To confess.”_

_“No. And yes. He knew I wanted to make a confession. He has seen my bucket list, after all. But he’s not aware I decided to do it today. Or here. He’s out of the country at the moment.”_

_Then Phillippa added, “You do not need to worry, Father Tommaso. He will know I haven’t revealed his secrets.” Phillippa assured, but Father Tommaso’s heart did not calm down._

_“My friend and his brother have helped and saved the lives of hundreds of millions of people worldwide. What are a few lives in exchange for that, right?” Phillippa sniffled._

_“Dear child, every life is precious in the sight of God.”_ _The priest said._

_“Exactly. Exactly!” Phillippa turned her face again to Father Tommaso’s blanched one. “All those millions count too, don't they?” Phillippa desperately asked before the silence stretched out for a long moment._

_“Phillippa. I am so sorry.” Father Tommaso compassionately said to her._

_“Don’t be. I have known for months that I am living on borrowed time. I suppose I have been blessed with this knowledge. I have had plenty of time to get my affairs in order. Tell my goodbyes to the people I love. Write my will.”_

_“I do not regret the lies. I regret that I have needed to lie in the first place. I regret putting my Mom, Giuseppe and my little brother in danger. I did not know, Father Tommaso. I swear to God I did not know. I was such a fool! I had no idea…_

_“I regret being unable to help any of the people I have witnessed disappear. I regret that I will cause pain to my family when **I** disappear. I regret that my life will come to an abrupt end so soon. There were things I wanted to accomplish which I will never manage to do. Become an artist. Travel the world. Get married. See every painting in the Louvre…”_

_“ **But** ,” Phillippa continued, “Despite knowing what I know now, I am glad I have been blessed with the chance to know my friend and his family. Not many people have been granted this privilege. After all, he is the most amazing person I have ever met.” Phillippa confessed to her priest. And brushed the tears away from her face with her cold hands._

_“Phillippa. From what you have confessed,” Father Tommaso crossed himself again and kissed his rosary, “It is clear to me that you care about your… friend very much. Does he not care about you in return? How can you be so sure he will take your life?”_

_“I simply know too much, Father Tommaso. I had hoped I had at least a couple more months left, but… he will return to Italy in less than two weeks. I… I think he will be sad to have to kill me. But one can never tell with him. Just like with bees.” Phillippa let out a humorous laugh._

_“Is there anything else you want to confess before I absolve you of your sins, Phillippa?”_

_Phillippa thought for a few seconds weighing this and that, searching for something that held actual weight before stumbling onto the grievous crime she had committed a fortnight ago._

_“I got rid of all his orange scented bubble bath, orange scented shampoos, orange scented oils and perfumes and threw out all the orange scented candles, incense sticks, even his potted orange trees… as well as poured down the drain the contents of five hundred and four orange flavoured Madeira wine bottles from his collection. And thirty orange and cinnamon flavoured gin bottles from the kitchen.” Phillippa confessed and for the first time she heard fear seep into her voice._

_“He will be so mad at me, Father Tommaso.” Phillippa whispered, terrified. “So, so mad. You can’t imagine…”_

_“Why did you… do these things, Phillippa?” Father Tommaso sounded… confused? Phillippa guessed it might have sounded a tad bit odd to an outside party…_

_“My friend likes to torture himself with them. At the time I hoped I could spare him at least a couple of days of torment. …Before he managed to replace all of it again.” Phillippa spoke barely above a whisper._

_“…I see.” Father Tommaso said at last._

_The silence stretched for a moment too long and he must have understood there was nothing else she wanted to say._

_“May God give you peace and pardon. I absolve you of your sins in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Father Tommaso said and crossed himself for the third time. “Amen.”_

_“Thank you, Father.”_

_Phillippa let out a deep breath, stood and walked out of the confessional box._

_Father Tommaso was already waiting for her. A moment later Phillippa grasped his outreached, warm hands with her own cold ones._

_“Dear Phillippa. I am so very sorry, child.” He said with bone deep sadness. There were tears in his eyes. “Can I help you in any way? With anything? Anything at all?”_

_“No, Father. It is… a great relief I could confide in you. You have already given me more than I… deserve, Father.” Phillippa said and hugged her priest._

_Then she looked in his warm brown eyes, which were over-flooding with sadness and compassion for her._

_“May God be with you, Phillippa.” She looked up to the high vaulted ceiling, inhaled a deep breath. After a moment she looked back down to the shorter man and gave Father Tommaso a brief, sad smile._

_“Addio, Padre Tommaso.”_

_Phillippa let go of his hands, turned to the open doors through which bright daylight shone on the nave and walked out of Chiesa Parrocchia Di San Leonardo Abate In Laiatico for the last time in her life._

*

**6\. VISIT THE LOUVRE. SEE MONA LISA**

Fucking vampires. Fucking greed. Fucking Fate.

The only thing she had ever truly wanted was to study art.

To become an artist.

She could have gotten a scholarship to any science related program. Chemistry. Physics. Math. Even fucking Biology. Anything.

**_But noooooo._ **

Instead, Phillippa had wanted to do what her heart desired.

And look where it had gotten her.

She had wanted to save some money for her tuition fees, housing, her trip to Paris before she had planned to start attending Lorenzo de’ Medici Art School in Florence in autumn.

Phillippa had planned on living in Paris for a month next July and to see as much of the Louvre as she could physically manage in about thirty days. Not nearly enough time to see every painting, not even close, but the ones she was the most interested in? It would have had to do.

Now? She was never going to even set her foot in the museum.

But there was something she could not deny.

One absolute truth that prevailed above all else.

She loved her new friends. Heidi, the twins. Aro, Renata. _Caius_.

It was so fucking unfair.

 _Life wasn’t fair_.

 _Phillippa would have **never** rather not met them_. _Even if it meant dying this young. This soon._

 _She loved them just as much as she loved her Mom_. _Giuseppe. Her little brother._

_It hurt more than anything she had felt in her entire life._

_Phillippa now understood why Master Aro loved his wine so much._

~~**7\. RE-READ HARRY POTTER BOOKS** ~~

She had managed to re-read the five books from cover to cover. Wistfulness had overtaken her when she finally gathered her courage and admitted to herself that she will never read the next one, which will be published only on July 16 next year (the date was announced three days ago), or any of the following books.

**~~8\. GET A TATTOO~~ **

As there was no need to worry about accidentally contracting anything like hepatitis, tuberculosis or HIV (not that she went to some underground hole. Far from it. She went to one of the best tattoo studios in Florence) as she will be dead very soon anyway, Phillippa had gotten a stylised Pegasus constellation between her Venus dimples. She had taken her sketch to the studio and to her enormous relief the artist had tattooed it on her with perfect accuracy. The white starry constellation looked fabulous on her skin. Plus it had felt fucking amazing. Phillippa had been disappointed when the man had told her he had finished after an hour.

**~~9\. BAKE GINGERBR~~ EAD COOKIES**

This last entry of her list made her giggle uncontrollably. It was Christmas. She was allowed to be a little sentimental, wasn't she?

Then there were the Christmas gifts she had received from her bloodthirsty friends.

She almost did not know what to make of them. Almost.

Phillippa didn't know whether to laugh or to cry.

As aforementioned, she was wearing the long Dolce & Gabbana silk blouse, gifted to her by Heidi. Heidi had given her more than one blouse though. She had also gifted her with a gorgeous blue Valentino dress, white Christian Louboutin pumps that fit perfectly and looked _amazing_. And black Versace jeans. Phillippa had figured out they were just the sample items, a sort of intro or bait, because the items of clothing were accompanied by gift cards worth five thousand euros each to the four shops. Heidi was crazy.

Renata had gifted Phillippa the complete first editions of Richard Burton’s translations of ten volumes of ‘The Thousand and One Nights’ and the six volumes of the ‘Supplemental Nights’. _Jesus Christ_. They weighed a ton. And. Phillippa was… _a liiiittle bit_ confused. The books were beautiful of course, and she knew Renata loved literature, but they must have cost a fortune. Phillippa did not know what to make of her gift. It was a very nice one of course, and Phillippa would love to have enough time left to read through every single book, but… she just did not have any more time. But… why such… books. Was Renata trying to hint at something here? Because if she did… holy shit. _Holy shit_. In any case, Renata had a shit sense of humour. Sleeping with Aro? Was Renata _nuts_? Aro would not… hmm. ~~He wouldn’t be interested- Would he? He _had_ told Phillippa one night when they had been totally shitfaced in his rooms about preferring to sleep with h- ~~

Moving on.

_Moving. The fuck. On._

Marcus had given her a painting of the Castle of Volterra. An unseen Leonardo’s original. Phillippa had almost fainted when she had unwrapped it this morning before leaving the castle for her week long Christmas holidays at her family’s home. She was… deeply touched. There had been tears. He had made her cry. Phillippa did not know how to ever thank him enough for being able to lay her eyes on that masterpiece.

Athenodora had given her two tickets to _Turandot_ at La Scala on January 16, 2005. A little over three weeks from now. Phillippa had been sad. Happy, but sad. She won’t be alive on January 16 to go see the opera.

Caius had gifted her with two stainless steel daggers, with gold accents and engraved runes on the blades (Phillippa had not had a chance to try to find the corresponding language to translate what was written on the daggers but she had a feeling she won’t be able to find it anyway. The symbols looked extraordinarily complex. Phillippa would bet the daggers were not Japanese or even Chinese in origin. _Rather something else_ ). Ivory hilt. Beautiful _and_ practical. There had been a note inside the box that said ‘ _Magical daggers. Will cut through anything. Use with caution. Merry Christmas, little human_ ’. Phillippa did not know what to make of his gift as well. On one hand he could have been coerced by someone to give her something and had grabbed the first thing that had been lying around. On the other? Caius loved weapons. Perhaps no one had exerted pressure on him to give them to Phillippa at all.

The eleven inch daggers did look old but was in pristine condition. And sharp. Holy shit were they sharp. She had taken the blades home as well to show Giuseppe. And had went to retrieve one of them from her room to cut up the frozen brick that was her gingerbread dough after she had taken it out of the fridge and had utterly failed to even dent the frozen foodstuff much less cut it up in chunks with the kitchen knives.

Caius’ dagger had cut through the gingerbread brick like it was **_not even there_**. _Disturbing_. And certainly not what Master Caius had intended the daggers to be used for. The thought curled Phillippa’s lips into a wickedly amused smirk. _Caius would be so pissed!_ Phillippa could only hope that Aro will keep his mouth shut about this. At least while she was still alive. Phillippa had gingerly put the blade down on the countertop so that she would not forget to take it with her when she finished baking the cookies. Heaven forbid Leo found it.

Alec and Jane had given her a car for Christmas. _An ocean blue Audi TT_. They were insane. Just like their father. She had had to bullshit to her parents, again. Phillippa was tired of lying to them. But she would keep on lying and lying and _lying_ , if that meant they got to live.

Jacques’ gift was a laptop. Practical. Very practical. Phillippa loved the thing. It was so new and fast _and shiny_ …

Corin’s Christmas present was a bottle of perfume. According to the label it was custom made by _Valerian Labs_ and had the property of masking the natural scent of humans and vampires alike to smell like _paint_. Which was not edible, obviously. Completely untempting. But not repulsive either. Paint smelled fantastic ( _good paint, new paint_ ). Phillippa loved getting high from the smell of paint in artist’s shops. It was her _catnip. It had been fabulous_. Anyhow. The perfume had the property of making a person completely undesirable for their blood but at the same time would not annoy any vampires with a truly repulsive scent.

Demetri had given her a kilo of weed. _That fucker_. How could she possibly smoke even a quarter of it before her time ran out?! She had _honest to God_ teared up. Fucking Demetri. Phillippa was starting to see why Renata hated that bastard. Phillippa had taken about one hundred and fifty grams with her to share with Giuseppe when her Mom eventually went to visit her friends, or had gone to sleep. And another three hundred to leave behind for him. It was not as if Phillippa will be able to go through all of it by herself, now was there? 

Felix had given her a diamond ring. Like. _What the fuck_ , Felix. It was pretty, she could not deny that, but. Was the creep really expecting her to wear it? She had had half a mind to throw the thing at him the next time she saw him, but... Why did it matter? Too much effort. Phillippa had left it in her rooms at the Castle.

Chelsea and Afton’s gift had left her with the impression that there must have been some sort of mix-up because they had gotten her a car as well. A black Jag. Phillippa had left it among the other sixty plus cars in the garage beneath the Castle.

She could explain borrowing a car from a friend from the Castle for Christmas to her parents. The Audi could be explained. Not a _Jaguar_. (She had learned her lesson when she had shown up in Aro’s Bentley three months ago and had to lie her head off when the avalanche of questions had crashed over her head).

Santiago’s Christmas gift was a Chatterley rose gold fountain pen. Phillippa had been pleasantly surprised. Simple and elegant. _Very nice_.

Emil’s was a professional digital camera. A thing of beauty. There were already a few photos there. Of amazing bird views of Italy, the Alps, of Europe at night. They were truly fantastical photographs.

Lily’s present was a… violin. Interesting choice of a Christmas gift, Phillippa had to give her points for the most original one. Nevertheless it was a very beautiful piece of musical instrument. Phillippa would have liked to learn how to play it.

Her drinking buddy had given her a box of chocolate truffles. It was weird. But also so sweet. He was such a funny vampire. One of the reasons Phillippa loved him so much. She had taken them along with her, but had not opened yet. She was waiting to share them with Leo, when he got back.

Apart from the box of chocolates, Aro’s gift had contained another box. _One other box_. Which in turn contained a stunningly beautiful necklace with a huge heart shaped blue gem and smaller regular diamonds around it and on the necklace’s chain. Phillippa was betting it was custom made from his personal gem collection.

Oh, yes.

Not to confuse it with his collection of gifted vampires. Phillippa was no expert on gemstones, but it looked _real_. Real life blue diamond ‘Heart of the Ocean’ necklace. At least it looked like the one from the film. The deep ocean blue diamond was the same shade as her eyes. Exactly the same. Phillippa… did not know what to think. She was afraid to touch it. To say nothing about wearing it or, Fate forbid, _losing_ or _damaging_ it.

In the end, she was left overwhelmed and unparallelly discombobulated.

Phillippa had not thought vampires even _celebrated_ Christmas. She had not expected to get _anything_. Honest to God. She had been _floored_ by all the gifts under the Christmas Tree Graffiti that had mysteriously appeared on her lounge room wall during the night and which she had woken up to this morning (before coming home for the Christmas holidays).

But why were they giving her such gifts? She knew they did not lack the money. She had effortlessly robbed them out of twelve point seven million euros, after all. It was not as if any of them could not afford to spend a few dimes (to them) on a Christmas gift for her.

With Master Aro gone, most of the Guard had felt emboldened to make holiday plans themselves. All of them, except Jane, Caius and Marcus had left town. Or at least that is what they had claimed.

Phillippa _had_ given much thought about how on earth there could have been so many missing predecessors of Phillippa (apparently she was the ninety-ninth Volturi Secretary since 1968, as she had been helpfully informed by Demetri on her thirteenth day on the job) and the police had no idea. At least Phillippa suspected that they had no idea. All of which had worked at the Castle, at the same fucking place of employment. How could that even be. The vampires were all about staying unsuspicious. And serial disappearances from the exact location? Of people having the same profession?

She had deduced that the previous secretaries did not have any family. Or had left them. _For some reason_. Or had lied to them about where they really worked. _For some reason she could not think of_. There was something. They all must have severed ties with their previous lives, before starting to work at the Castle. Why? There was an obvious explanation. **_There had to be_**. Phillippa could hear it laughing at her idiocy, _making fun of her_ , constantly, but she just could not figure it out. It must be obvious-

Given that the Vampires owned _Valerian Inc_. (And had that not been the fucking surprise of the millennium) it would not be difficult to appoint (on paper) any of the previous secretaries to any of their other branches, - London, New York, Sydney, Ottawa, Seattle, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Miami, Adelaide, Bogota, Barcelona, Bergen, Osaka, Vienna, Paris, Beijing, Luanda, Chennai, Rio de Janeiro… but these were just the ones that first came to her mind. _Valerian Incorporated_ was a _Monster_. How could it not be when it was Caius and Aro’s baby? Because the two of them were the ones who played the active role in raising it. Marcus though? Phillippa had a feeling that Marcus did not care about the baby. _At all_.

 _Anyway_.

It could explain why the vampires got away with regularly eating their secretaries. The tourists though? Phillippa had no idea how they could kidnap twenty to forty people every month and get away with that. It was a true mystery.

She had asked her friend about this once. Both about the secretaries and about the tourists. He had given her a devilish smile, refilled her wine glass and changed the subject. He could be such a bastard sometimes. He knew the curiosity was killing her!

Nevertheless, the question remained: What was their endgame? They must know that she would not work for them indefinitely. Why were they spending millions (literally) on her gifts? If Phillippa had been an ordinary person, she would be feeling sick to her soul from all the money they had spent on her Christmas presents. _Well_. She did not feel bad. One bit.

Phillippa understood that theoretically, she should feel like she could not accept any of them but… she was only deeply perplexed. She had no problem with their gifts. _Well._ She had a problem with Master Aro’s gift. It did derail her a bit. That gem was enormous. _Ginormous_. The blue diamond alone must be worth several hundred million euros. **_This_** … Phillippa did not want to think about. _~~Jesus Christ, Aro.~~_ ~~~~

Phillippa had told her parents that she worked at the Castle of Volterra, before her first day when she had been slapped in the face with the horrific truth. She had not known she should say nothing to them. And when she eventually went missing? It will be the first place her parents and the police would look for her. Of course, the Volturi could always deny having employed her. They were excellent liars. And they had excellent lawyers.

Phillippa suspected that they had bought the police of Volterra a very long time ago. And that of the other major cities. Could be one of the explanations why nobody ever came knocking on the twenty ton gold doors, looking for missing tourists.

Phillippa could only hope that her friends would leave her family alone.

Her Mom was suspicious. She had noticed Phillippa acting strange since she had started at her new job. That her daughter suddenly had become mysteriously tight-lipped about her life.

Giuseppe? He had been suspicious the moment she revealed how much they were paying her. Even before she had moved to Volterra.

Phillippa would bet that her step-father thought she was working for some sort of crime syndicate. Good grief.

The bizarre warnings to Leo, the clipped answers, the lies, the hugs and ‘love yous’ and tears every time she left on the end of her days off? The new car? He had seen through this bullshit as well. Had known it was a gift from _someone_. And now she planned on leaving him three hundred grams of drugs, like it was nothing. Note to self: should stick a note to the cannabis that said ‘ _This was just laying around, Giù. Nobody will notice (or care) it’s missing... Enjoy! Love, Phee._ ”

And the last time she had come home, Mom had friends over and they were drinking wine.

Now, Phillippa had never drunk much wine as a child. What with living in New York the first five years of her life with her Mom and Daddy, before he died and then, when her Mother had met Giuseppe two years later when he had been guest lecturing at the New York University, and then moving to Italy with him and Mom after the contract with the NYU had ended.

Her mother had never approved or allowed her to drink wine with their meals, despite Giuseppe trying to convince her. Eventually he had won her over. But it had taken a few years.

Last month though? She had drunk more than a bottle of wine herself with her mother and her friends and had been only barely tipsy. She had not even noticed this at first, so used to drinking with Master Aro and trying to make their parties last… the conversations they had had… she would not trade them for the world. Phillippa was always looking forward to their bimonthly drinking parties. Aro had spilled such juicy things about the coven and other covens and vampires in general and some truly personal things (she suspected some things were never meant to reach her ears, exactly alike those about his sister).

Phillippa could have told Marcus about Didyme, but she _would never_. She would never do such a thing to Aro, would never betray her friend’s trust like this. Marcus? Phillippa thought Marcus should have figured the truth out for himself centuries ago. Marcus should have understood. Which meant _Marcus_ _did not want to understand_.

It sure was easier to blame Aro for his wife’s death than consider any alternative explanation. Because, _at the end of the night_ , Aro loved his sister more than life itself. Even if she had been- _well_. The things Aro had revealed in his inebriated state about ‘ _his ardently beloved little sister_ ’? They had painted a rather chilling picture. Phillippa thanked God that Didyme was not among the living anymore.)

Her Mom probably thought Phillippa was having an affair with one of her no doubt married bosses and had not confided in her or Giù _for obvious reasons_. (Who wanted to reveal to their parents that they were sleeping with their unhappily married ( _or widowed_ ) much older boss, ~~not that Phillippa had done or would ever do such a thing~~ ).

Giuseppe probably thought she was in deep shit in some mafia type organisation and appreciated not involving them further in any of it. She didn't blamed him. Phillippa would have thought the same thing. And Phillippa fucking loved him for being so fucking sensible. And not trying to grill her for answers. He understood that if she was keeping mum, it was for a damn good reason. 

Well. Giuseppe had always had keener instincts than her Mom.

By now all the gingerbread had been rolled out and cut into Leo’s and Mom’s and Phillippa's preferred shapes. All that she had to do now was carefully roll up the excess dough, collect the cookies from the surface, place them on the pans and shove them in the pre-heated oven.

But…

Phillippa became aware of someone’s eyes on her.

Someone was watching her.

The little hairs on her nape stood on end as the feeling intensified.

She slowly turned around.

But there was no one there.

However, she could still feel being watched.

They had no neighbours in the direction the kitchen windows were overlooking. They revealed the view of Tuscan fields. The windows further across the kitchen area and then the living room presented the view of the road and even more Tuscan fields. There was nobody there as well.

Phillippa reached for the radio and turned it off.

Silence.

The eyes were still on her.

Her heart was starting to beat faster.

She slowly, carefully took the dagger from the table and turned around again-

“ _Jesus Fucking Christ!_ You scared me half to death!” Phillippa shouted as she exhaled a relieved breath.

Phillippa had never thought she would see any of the vampires in her house.

“My apologies, Phillippa.” Felix said with a smile. If she had not become immune to their beautiful faces after the first two days of hearing them talk shit about humans and about _her_ , and being vain, conceited, arrogant snobs, she would have thought his smile beautiful. _But alas…_

“What the fuck are you doing here, Felix?” _What **was** he doing here? At Phillippa’s family home! _“At my house! My family could have been here!” Phillippa exclaimed in indignation.

“I made sure they had left, beautiful.”

Thank God he had not shown up when they were home. Thank _Fate_.

“How many times have I told you not to call me that, Felix?” Phillippa exhaustedly asked. This was beyond weird. Why was Felix _here_ -

“Not nearly enough, beautiful.” He was looking at her with such intense eyes. And he was slowly gliding closer to her.

And for the first time in months Phillippa felt fear of a vampire attempting to capture her.

Why. Why why why _why why why why **why** **why**_ **why**!

It was not supposed to happen like this…

Phillippa stood her ground.

There was nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. To escape. No one to ask for help.

 _One point two metres to step backwards only to hit her back against the countertop_. What was the point?

“Master Aro will have your head for this, surely you must know this.” Phillippa heard herself say. Calm, cold-blooded. She did not know she was capable of such ice.

“I know. He will be furious when he gets back from… Forks.” He said as he finally stopped coming closer. _Stopping half a metre from her_. “But he will be furious either way.”

Felix lifted a hand and lightly, carefully traced the side of her face, her cheek. Had this been any other situation, she would have moved back, away from his chilly touch, but… there was nowhere to run. She felt a tear roll down her cheek.

“… _why_?” She needed to know. _This was not how her life was supposed to end_.

“Master Aro... knows how I feel about you.” The look in his eyes. Was this how stalkers looked at their victims? With such single-minded obsessiveness? It must be. “I fear he will kill you as my punishment when he finds out about the cars.” … _Cars?_

 _Come again_? Did she hear right?

“…What. You fucked with more than the Seattle branch?” Phillippa exclaimed, flabbergasted. Why would Felix do something so imbecilic? “How many- _What_ possessed you to do such a thing in the first place, big guy?” This did not make any sense.

“Practically all of them. _I was so angry at him,_ doll. So incredibly angry. I admit it was not my brightest moment… Do you know the real reason Heidi and the twins hired you, beautiful?” he asked but did not allow her to say a single word. It looked like Felix was prone to soliloquies before having his dinner.

_Felix!_

_Who would have thought, eh?_

“It was because they wanted to fuck with all the rest of us. Demetri, Master Caius and I had become so used to helping ourselves to our secretaries. _Too often,_ as it turned out. They did not last more than a couple of months, on average, doll. We had gotten careless… _sloppy_. Fell on Master Aro’s last nerve and pissed off Heidi and the twins in the process. For you see, beautiful. Your blood smells like Heaven. For all of us to feel the same way? Unprecedented.”

“Aro-”

“Master Aro would trade even _your_ blood for a bottle of wine any fucking time of the night. He would barely notice if you were his singer, beautiful.” Felix said with an amused grin.

 _Well_. Felix’s reasoning was not unsound given the evidence. But not exactly correct. Because he was _dead wrong_.

Three months ago, back in September, Master Aro had been incredibly frustrated that Heidi had brought home unexpectedly low quality f- … _blood_. It was not really Heidi’s fault. Aro was extremely picky. Everyone else had had a nice… _dinner_. Except for Aro, of course, who had not eaten _anything_.

To add insult to injury, Phillippa had known Aro had not eaten the previous month as well because he had been in a _Valerian Inc_. board meeting in Rome at the time of their monthly collective feeding. Which equalled to two months without food. Aro did not fancy leaving the Castle just because he was feeling a little hungry, unlike the rest of the coven. He usually opted to wait for Heidi to bring dinner to _him_. Odd, but who could really follow Aro’s mind’s whimsical personality, right?

Plus he had confessed to Phillippa one night, that July’s dinner had been barely acceptable ( _one sip to find out he hated how the blood tasted and another for appearances sake_ ). As had June’s. In all honesty, Aro had not had a proper meal since May. _Four fucking months._

The memory flashed behind her eyes for a second as Felix kept on talking and watching her like a world class creep.

*

_Phillippa lifted her eyes from the screen of her MacBook when the ornate doors of the throne room-cum-feeding room (for the time being) were harshly opened, the screaming becoming that much louder and shriller for the duration it took for-_

_Aro to step out of the throne room where the tourists were busily screaming in terror and pain, a dark look spreading on his angelic features as he closed the heavy, ornate doors behind himself._

_He huffed out a frustrated breath and inhaled the air of the hallway only to_ _instantly_ _freeze_ _._

_And then his head slowly turned to her and his bottomless black eyes looked directly into her own._

_It was written all over his face. What he was about to do. Almost nine months, since she had learned about the Undead, she had been allowed to keep her life._

_Aro briskly walked to her desk, took her by her hand without saying a thing and led her up to his chambers in a hurried pace. She would have needed to run to keep up with him if her legs had not been as long as they were. Sometimes being tall paid off. (If one overlooked the irony that her long legs allowed her to get closer to her inevitable death so much faster.)_

_The lounge in his chambers looked as it always did._

_Beautiful. Artful. Tasteful. With dozens of wine glasses and empty and full wine bottles ‘decorating’- well. Everything._

_He led her to the sofa which they usually occupied, **had** occupied eight nights ago, in fact, while ‘sampling’ yet another vintage. Rosés of 1999, this time. _

_Aro pulled her down on the sofa and seated himself right beside her. Their legs were touching._

_“You must forgive me, my friend.” Aro said as he watched her with obsidian eyes. Phillippa heard her heart drumming in her ears. She felt she was being hypnotised. She was aware he was doing it, but it did not quite work on her. He huffed out another frustrated breath, clearly seeing the desired effect not taking hold of her._

_A large wine glass, full of water flew towards them and silently landed on the coffee table in an arm’s reach away from Phillippa. Her gaze shifted back to her friend._

_“I had hoped it would not come to this but I am so very hungry, darling.” Her friend said. His eyes glued to her neck. “So very hungry.” Phillippa could see this. He looked **starved**._

_Her heart had started to beat so loudly and heavily, it was almost painful. As if it wanted to run away from her. Or away from Aro. Phillippa was undecided on which one exactly._

_She had started sniffling. She hated that. Phillippa knew this was going to happen one day in the near future. There was no reason to cry. None. No matter if today was The Day._

_Phillippa had cried plenty already._

_“Oh, darling… don’t cry.” Aro whispered and pulled her on his lap and in a soft embrace, his sweet honeysuckle scent consuming her lungs. “You will be fine, darling. A little tired afterwards…” Aro reassured._

_What? WHAT? Did she hear right? He wasn’t going to-_

_“…Master?” Phillippa asked in an unbelieving but nonetheless hopeful voice._

_Because how could she not?_

_“Tell you what. You allow me to drink from you and in exchange you can have the rest of today and the next two days off. Fully paid. How does that sound? It is your brother’s birthday the day after tomorrow, is it not?”_

_“It is, Master Aro.”_

_“Wonderful! What do you say, friend?” Aro happily exclaimed as he tenderly brushed her hair away from her face, behind her left ear (away from her now exposed neck), but it felt a bit rushed to her._

_Phillippa carefully searched her drinking buddy’s eyes but found no trickery in them. He was completely sincere._

_“Three days.” Phillippa imperiously stated, raising her chin skyward, a little, as she watched him through her eyelashes while the corners of her lips were futilely attempting to rise up. Aro started laughing. A truly mirthful sound. Rare. No sign of his crazy seeping through. Just pure delight. It was so good to see him like this._

_He ceased his laughter after a few long moments, his gaze slipping from her eyes to her neck once more._

_“You drive a tough bargain, Signorina Camilli. Three days. Fully paid. Alrigh-”_

_“And I can borrow your Bentley. To get home and back.” Phillippa talked over him. Oh dear. But her friend only burst into delightful giggles._

_“You are one greedy little thing, Signorina Camilli.” Aro remarked with shining obsidian eyes._

_Phillippa lifted a challenging eyebrow._

_“Alright, darling. Three free days. Fully paid. And my Bentley.”_

_“Then we have a deal, Master Aro.” Phillippa said with more confidence than she really felt she possessed._

_“Thank you.” Aro said, relieved. Relieved? Why was he so relieved? “You are braver than you credit yourself with, Signorina Camilli.”_

_“Shouldn’t we be on first name basis already, Master Aro? Look at us!” Phillippa gestured to their positions making him smile._

_“Perhaps. Arm, shoulder or neck?” Aro asked as his eyes again began their staring at her neck._

_“I get to choose?” Surprise unmistakable in her startled question._

_“You do.” He replied, amused._

_“Huh. What do you recommend, friend?” She asked with her best poker face._

_Phillippa could see Aro was beyond amused. He was trying not to laugh, again. God, but she loved-_

_“The neck. For best experience.”_

_“How... shockingly unexpected!” Phillippa exclaimed. He was watching her with warm, dark eyes. Starving, warm, dark eyes. They made her sober up quickly, “Of course, Master. I don’t mind.” Phillippa said in a serious voice, even if she was a bit nervous from the anticipation of the unknown._

_Her friend gave her a thankful smile and cautiously yet eagerly leaned closer to her. He deftly and without the littlest hesitation unbuttoned the collar of her white high neck satin blouse, softly touched her pulsing carotid artery with his icy lips and slowly bit down into her neck._

_Phillippa had expected excruciating pain. Why wouldn’t she?_

_Deeper and deeper his teeth sank._

_It was a little painful. A little bit…A tiny little bit. But to be perfectly honest, she would choose this over a paper cut any day. What was the whole fuss about? She heard him chuckle before he started to pull blood from her._

_What she **did not** expect was the loud moan of her Master that sounded through the lounge as her blood started to fill his mouth._

_It was an undeniably interesting feeling._

_Phillippa had wondered, before, how it would feel to be fed on. Of course she had. Who wouldn’t? People with no imagination, that’s who._

_Not at all unpleasant. Phillippa would even say she quite liked the feeling-_

_Still, what was all the fuss about? Why did the tourists scream so bloody loud every time? Aro chuckled again as he continued to moan and pull blood from her._

_This went on for a while._

_After about five minutes he started to pull slower and fuller mouthfuls. The sensation was a bit more pronounced, but still quite enjoyable._

_And then he became rougher. His hold on her almost painful._

_After another five, Phillippa was becoming increasingly lightheaded. Her ears were ringing. Was this supposed to happen?_

_“Aro, am I supposed to get this dizzy?” Phillippa cautiously asked. They usually did not feed this long in the throne room-_

**_This was not supposed to take this long_**.

_“Aro!” Phillippa yelled._

_He froze._

_Stopped his loud, pleased moaning._

_Stopped pulling her blood._

_Swallowed that, which he had managed to suck before he had stilled and slowly, carefully retracted his teeth._

_Not the best feeling in the world, but paper cuts still sucked even more._

_This thought elicited another chuckle from her friend, as he licked over the wound and she could feel it mending by itself._

_Phillippa was blinking back colourful spots. Huge colourful spots. And she felt very lightheaded. And **exhausted**. Sleepy… _

_Phillippa knew she would have been swaying right now if not for his arms around her._

_“Darling, drink the water.” The wineglass with water was carefully placed in her hands. It felt as if it weighed as much as Pain did. She lifted it up and gulped down the cool water in seconds._

_The coloured spots clouding her vision were receding. The ringing had stopped. Not going to faint then. Thank God._

_“Why didn’t you stop sooner?” Phillippa was curious as she leaned against him. She did feel very tired. Very tired…_

_“Here, drink another one, child.” Another full glass was pressed in her hands._

_Phillippa dutifully finished the heavenly treat of water._

_“I apologise, Phillippa.” Aro said and she could somehow tell he really meant it. “It has been a while since I have gotten this carried away. Your blood… if I did not know better, I would think it is not completely human. You have empyrean blood, child. It tastes exponentially better than your lovely scent suggests. Like…” he seemed to be searching for the right word to describe it, “…liquid ambrosia. It took me by surprise, my friend.” Aro confessed. Then his tone became very serious-_

_“Do not allow anyone else to drink from you, Phillippa, if you can help it. No matter what they promise to give in return. It is highly probable they would not be willing or able to stop.” Aro warned her darkly._

_“…I won’t.” Phillippa quietly promised. She was tired, but she could tell how important it was that she heeds his words. So very tired, but-_

_No sleep. Not before she collected the second part of the deal. But before that-_

_“Why were you laughing, Master?” Phillippa asked. His eyes had become scarlet red. Glowing scarlet red. Like fresh blood… Focus. She had things to accomplish._

_No sleep. Sleep was for the **weak**. And Phillippa was the **farthest** from weak there was._

_“You have a very high pain threshold, dear. Except for paper cuts, it seems.” Aro chuckled._

_“Oh?” No sleep. Phillippa had to get the keys from him before she could burrow into her bed for the next fifteen hours and let her body replenish the blood._

_“Yes. You did not even need the anaesthetic, my friend. It’s great for numbing the pain, but too much of it and it affects the human body as an incredibly strong aphrodisiac.”_

_“Duly noted, Master.” Phillippa dryly said with an amused smirk. “The keys?”_

_Phillippa heard jingling from Aro’s study and saw how the keys pushed open the study door a little and slipped through the small gap, before flying across the room and hitting Aro’s open palm with a soft chime._

_“Child.” His scarlet eyes, which shone the colour of Phillippa’s blood, caught hers. His face serious once more. “Promise me you will not leave today. You lost more than three pints of blood. …Almost four. Have at least one good night’s sleep before you depart, darling.”_

_“I’ll leave tomorrow. I’m too tired to leave tonight anyway.” Phillippa promised._

_Aro took her right hand and pressed the keys in Phillippa’s waiting palm. He kissed her temple before releasing her and leaned back against the sofa._

_“Thank you, Master.” Phillippa said as she gingerly got up from his lap and headed for the doors to the hallway._

_“Safe travels, Signorina Camilli.” Phillippa heard her friend say, as she stepped into the hallway and closed the door to his chambers behind her._

*

Felix had not yet stopped his monologuing. 

“You are our punishment in waiting, doll. Our exercise in self-restraint. Of course, it was before we came to consider you family.”…Right.

“Felix. _Felix_. Listen to me. Master Aro wouldn’t kill _me_ because of the stupid cars. I had no part in it. He will see that. Aro is not unreasonable.” Jane was right. Felix truly was a moron. Aro was going to kill Phillippa because he spilled about Didyme. Not because of Felix’s stupidity.

Jesus Christ.

“You don’t know him as well as I do, doll.” The downgrade _or did he consider this an upgrade of endearments?_ was seriously starting to get on her nerves. _Asshole_. “Aro does not care about humans. You are all the same to him. _Food_.” _Hello, thy name is Hypocrisy!_ Phillippa could. She _could_ believe Felix would be such a fucking hypocrite. Still. It made her a bit stunned, to witness for herself.

“You are wrong, Felix.” Because Master Aro did care about her. _He did_. She knew this as she knew her own name.

“I am not willing to take that chance.”… _And what did **that** mean?_

“What do you-”

“If you are a vampire-” Her brain short-circuited, “-and if you are gifted, he might reconsider.”

…

…

…

There was no way. He didn’t… No.

How… surprisingly noble of him. But his logic was based on too many ‘ifs’.

“… _what?_ Felix, no. No. You cannot be serious, big guy. No. No!”

“Isn’t it what you want, doll? Why you agreed to work in the Castle. All our secretaries want to become vampires. They desperately hope we will change them.” Felix let out an amused laugh.

Phillippa felt stupid. It was so fucking obvious, now that she had it spelled out for her. The _why_ her predecessors had completely severed ties with their lives prior to starting to work at the Castle. They all had mistakenly hoped for a blatant lie. _Those poor, misguided, **naïve** souls._

 _One more Mystery solved_.

Felix closed the remaining distance between them, stepping right in front of her.

He smelled like pineapples.

 _God_ , Phillippa hated pineapples.

Felix’s sweet scent was nothing like the sweet Jasmine flower fragrance Jane possessed or the scent of lilies Alec always carried with himself. Or Heidi’s lovely caramel scent, or even Renata’s cotton candy one. To say nothing about Aro’s amazing Japanese Honeysuckle fragrance.

She looked into Felix’s dark, obsessed eyes and steeled herself for what she knew she had to do, Aro’s voice ringing in her ears-

 _Do not allow anyone else to drink from you, Phillippa, if you can help it. No matter what they promise to give in return. It is highly probable they would not be_ _willing_ _or_ _able_ _to stop._

Her grip on ~~Caius’~~ _Sadami’s_ dagger tightened (because it _must_ be one from the collection Aro won and then sent home to Caius) as Felix leaned closer to her, Demetri’s voice ringing in her ears-

… _Mast_ _er Aro duelled Sadami for his art collection with the katanas we brought back to Master Caius. And **those blades** , man, they could take our heads clean off. And that’s **exactly** what Master Aro did. Sadami didn’t have any choice but to concede his defeat…_

Felix looked down in her eyes.

“I will turn you, doll. But first… _I have to have a taste_ , beautiful. _You have no clue_ …”

Now.

Phillippa was not a _total_ idiot. She considered herself fairly intelligent.

She had accidentally, circumstantially witnessed a couple of vampire executions in the past year. 

And what she took away from witnessing Aro dealing out Death like candy on Halloween, was the detaching of the heads _first_. Not that Aro always went for the heads first. However, in Phillippa’s case? It was the only way of incapacitating a vampire instantly, so that it would count.

Felix leaned down and bit into her neck, just as Phillippa had expected. It hurt far more than when Aro had bitten her, but not nearly enough to prevent her from-

Felix’s knees _literally buckled_ as the taste of her blood hit his tongue ( _WHAT WAS SO FUCKING SPECIAL ABOUT HER FREAKING BLOOD?!_ ) and he let out an embarrassingly obscene sound, his hold on her momentarily slacking in his surprise-

And that’s the moment she stroke.

_- **We do not show mercy** -_

Surely and without hesitation Phillippa lifted the blade behind Felix’s neck _(as he kept on greedily sucking and sucking and sucking, no intention of ever stopping)_ and, in one swift, forceful swing ( _because Phillippa knew their bodies were no frozen gingerbread_ ), sliced Felix’s head clean off his shoulders and kicked his slumping, unbalanced body down to the floor (God but the bastard was hard … _and heavy_ ). It hit the ground a few seconds after Felix’s head, which had fallen to her kitchen floor when his teeth had instantaneously released her neck as his mouth had opened in a deafening, agonised screech.

His neck indeed had been no frozen gingerbread brick… but it still posed no challenge to Sadami’s blade. _How could it cut through vampire flesh so easily-_

But the thing about vampires… _they do not die_ , even if their heads are sliced clean off.

Felix’s body was slowly but surely trying to stand up-

_- **or give second chances-**_

Phillippa wasted no precious seconds in chopping off the arms and feet of Felix’s body.

With each cut the screaming got more agonised and desperate. _Loud_. (It was a blessing the closest neighbouring house was two hundred metres away).

But the body still kept moving. _Still tried to get up_. To reach his head, his dismembered limbs. _To get to_ **_her_**. The arms were sluggishly but _surely_ crawling over her floor back to her, even though she had thrown them several metres away from the body.

- ** _to the stupid_** -

A desperate sob ripped from her throat.

A moment later she felt the bleeding wound on her neck starting to get warmer.

No. No no no _no no no **no!**_

 _Fucking Hell_.

Phillippa did the only thing she could think of as beginnings of panic threatened to seize her-

She grabbed Felix’s head which must have weighed as much as Pleasure (or at least eight kilos) by his long hair and threw it in the pre-heated oven.

- ** _Signorina Camilli_** -

And then there was tormented howling coming from the oven. Muffled, tormented howling. The body parts on the floor appeared to be suffering a seizure.

Fifteen seconds later, the screaming abruptly cut off, in time with the last twitch of the body parts covering the kitchen floor.

_Sweet Mary, Holy Mother of Jesus._

Her heart was pumping contaminated blood at rapid speed through her veins.

Because.

Phillippa was getting warm. Which could only mean-

No no no no no… not this.

She reached for her Blackberry which was still soundly lying on the kitchen counter, right beside the rolled out gingerbread dough and dialled Heidi.

The call rang out and out and out… until it disconnected.

She tried Jane.

Then Marcus. The call did not even connect. _Did he ever even charge his fucking phone?!_ (Phillippa had never had need to call Master Marcus before. For all she knew, Marcus did not even know how to turn the thing called mobile phone on. _Fuck_.)

She tried calling Caius, but he did not answer.

Why weren’t they picking up?!

Then Alec.

She called _Demetri_. No response.

He probably did not pick up on principle, the fucker.

Only Jane, Marcus and Caius had stayed behind at the Castle.

Demetri, Alec, Heidi and Athenodora had gone to _Les Misérables_ in London. No wonder they did not answer.

Much too far away anyway.

There was no point in trying to reach Lily, Corin, Santiago, Emil or Jacques. Or Afton and Chelsea. They should be landing in the Bahamas any minute now.

The heat had spread to the toes of her feet.

She called Caius, again.

 _The Castle_. But nobody answered.

**_Why was nobody picking up?_ **

A tear splashed on the screen. Phillippa had not noticed she had started to cry. It was getting so hot in the kitchen.

… _perhaps_? …Perhaps Master Aro was back already?

She called Aro.

It was connecting, connecting, connecting… too long. Which meant Aro was still not back in Italy-

-another miserable sob escaped her.

 _What was she going to d_ -

“It is ever so lovely _if slightly surprising_ to hear from you, darling Phillippa!” Aro’s jovial, slightly manic voice greeted her.

Phillippa had never thought she would be so relieved and _grateful_ to hear her friend’s voice. A strangled, tearful sob echoed in the otherwise silent kitchen.

“… ** _Aro_** _._ ”

“What is the matter, my friend?” Master Aro asked in immediate worry.

“ _ **Master Aro**_. _Nobody else is picking up their fucking phone_.” Phillippa sniffled. “ _Are you home yet_? … _please be home_.”

“I’m afraid not, darling. I’m still in America.” She could not help the crying anymore. It was so hot in the kitchen. So, so hot.

“ _Darling_ , what is wrong?” Her friend asked again. And was she imagining the trace of fear Phillippa thought she could hear in his voice?

There was no faster or clearer way to confess to what she had done and bring him up to speed than saying-

“ _I killed Felix_.”

-now was there?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Pain and Pleasure are Jane’s Serval kitties.
> 
>   
> _Mi dispiace, Padrone Aro. (Italian)_ – I’m sorry, Master Aro. 
> 
> _Nel nome del Padre e del Figlio e dello Spirito Santo. Amen. (Italian)_ – In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
> 
>  _Addio, Padre Tommaso. (Italian)_ – Farewell, Father Tommaso.
> 
> Thank you for reading. ❤ Your comments and kudos are very much appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> ... To Be Continued?


End file.
